The Wrathful One
by Lucas Bane
Summary: Story in league with Sins of the Father: Pride, by TheUndyingCrystal. This is the story of Adam Carver, my OC for Kel's FFX: World Domination possibly. This some crazy, random shiz of how two beings are gonna lay waste to Spira. Major alternate universe, people! Story changed to appropriate rating.
1. Chapter 1

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. I'm just going to make this first chapter short.**

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My name's Adam Carver. I'm a runaway child who was sick of being a burden to my mother. Seeing her so afraid of me all the time filled me with such strong emotions. Sadness. Confusion. Loneliness. But the one feeling that trumped all the others was Anger. I was so angry that I made her scared. I was so angry that that bastard of a father had pushed me past my limits.

BUT I COULDN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!

The ceaseless beatings my mother and I received at his hands became too much after so many years. I had to end it. I HAD TO! My anger was literally eating away at my soul. Undoubtably, it would have continued till I myself was finally consumed by it.

But I found a way to use it. I found a way to make it MY victim. The answer came in the form of a spector named Ansem. But we'll get to that later. First, I'll go ahead and fill you in my story from the start.

Ya'see, I grew up in the family of a traveling merchant who did business across the planet. My father, the family man that he considered himself to be, would always bring us along to wherever the next possible customer hailed from. We traveled with him across the world. By the time I was seven, I'd seen more cultures and heard more languages then most people can name.

While that may have sounded all sugary and nice, you weren't in my shoes. Ya'see, the business that my dad was in was a very risky, very stressful, business. The business was selling illicit arms to random warring factions across the globe. The real hotspots were always the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, Central America, and the SouthEast islands of Asia.

He'd supplied numerous weapons of all types, from AK-47s and grenades to Browning .50cal machine guns and RPGs (Rocket Propelled Grenades). He was a very much admired and sought after arms dealer among the hundreds of militias and paramilitary organizations across the globe.

However, not every visit is a payday when it comes to arms dealing. A customer might change their mind at the last minute, leaving my dad with tons of illegal weapons on an airplane waiting to land. Not only that, but you've got the CIA, ATF, Homeland Security, DEA, Interpol, KGB, and FBI groups all hounding ya, sniffing out each spot you've been to. That was the real reason why my dad always took us with him: so that we could never be used against him.

I was ignorant of the true danger we were in when I was boy, but my dad would never hesitate to give me a taste of what might happen if one of his enemies ever got their hands on me. I was seven when he first beat me. Normally, I would have hated him, but then again...I 'did' ask for it.

I wouldn't have held anything personal against him, but then he started to do it more often, especially when customers would back out of the deal. I wasn't the only one. My mom suffered his wrath as well.

_*flashback*_

_"Marcus! Please stop! You're hurting him" Amelia Carver shouted. She received a backhand to her face from her husband, Marcus Carver. _

_The blow sent her sprawling to her feet. Marcus stood at an imposing 6'4 over his seven year old son, Adam Carver. The boy was already bloody and bruised from several hits and having the refrigerator door slammed repeatedly into his head. _

_The boy looked up through tear stained eyes at the man he called 'father'. The man's strength, despite his 42yr old body, was incredibly strong. Almost inhuman. He looked up into his father's amberish-yellow eyes. _

_Those eyes scared him. They didn't belong to a human, but to an animal; a dangerous, feral animal. He had those same eyes, though his hadn't the crazed look in them like his father's did._

_Marcus bent down and picked up his son by the throat and repeatedly punched him in the face with his other. _

_"Get use to it, son. This is how the world really is! It's mean and unfair, and there's always someone after you. You have to be tough and strong. You have to ignore pain at all times. If you don't, you'll die." _

_The next blow knocked Adam unconscious._

_*flashback ends* _

And that was basically my life in a nutshell. It kept on going for the next five years.

**Author's Note: This is just the intro. Plus, I am in a hurry and couldn't write all I wanted to, so really, this is like...only half the intro. Anyway, be sure to continue following this story. I promise I'll make it tie in soon. Please review and give me your thoughts.**


	2. Intro part 2 of 2

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. This is the second half of my intro, or prologue. I do not own any of the characters from Far Cry. They belong to Ubisoft.**

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_5yrs after first beating_

After so long, I couldn't take it anymore, so I now stood over my father's bloody form. During one of our daily father/son moments, I pulled out a knife when his back was turned and I stabbed him atleast twenty times. The bastard didn't die still, but he wasn't moving either. However, he still looked at me with those damn eyes. I had always hated the fact that I had his eyes.

But something was different now. In those eyes of his, there wasn't hatred or regret..but respect. He finally saw me as a man and not a boy.

"Good job..kiddo. I'm proud of ya," he weezed. "Now when I'm gone, don't you go gettin' soft on me. You've finally used your anger to further yourself after all those years I thought I had wasted teaching you. It was anger that had kept me alive during my darkest times. Your's has yet to arrive, so that's why I treated you like I did."

He lifted his hand from one of the stab wounds. His body had sealed most of them, but the loss of blood was too much and some wounds refused to heal. "I want you to explore and develope that wrath. Bend it to your will. Don't waste all of our moments by ignoring or fearing it."

He coughed up a bunch of blood and his eyelids began to lower. "You are truly my son, Adam. I know you'll do me proud, whether you like me or not."

With that, Marcus Carver gave up the ghost, leaving me now greatly confused by his last words.

I was very confused by my father's last words. How was I suppose to bend 'my wrath' to my will? And not just that, but how will my mother and I live now?

I nearly slapped myself for forgetting about my mother. I rushed over to her bruised body. She had witnessed me killing her husband, my father, like some rabid animal.

As I came close to her, she flinched at my touch. The look of sheer terror and fear in her eyes was the same look she'd give to my dad whenever he was beating her or me.

From then on, she didn't see me as a 12yr old boy, but an animal that could lose control at any moment.

For a moment...that stare pissed me off.

In hindsight, I would've killed myself if I'd known that that stare would be the first of many for the next several months to come.

Well, after that incident, we burried my dad and my mom took me, and my dad's personal credit card, and got out of Dodge. When the federal agents kicked down the door the next week to find a bloody and half-ruined living room and the body of the man they'd been after for 15yrs burried in the backyard, word spread around the globe fast.

All of my dad's customers were upset. Some more so then others. Some few ones were even upset enough to actually track us down to just give their personal condolences.

Heck, there was even a rebel faction in Syria who started a bloody 4month long revolution in which they toppled the dictator who had ruled over the country with an iron fist for twenty years. They said that they had finally given the war that Marcus Carver had been hoping for.

Hearing all of this infuriated me to a certain extent. The man that had been a monster to me and my mom was being hailed as a hero to tens of thousands of militants all over the world. Oh, the irony was not lost on us.

After that war, Mom had finally had enough. She wanted to get away from my father so much, but she just couldn't. Even with him dead. And me...she was still constantly afraid of me, despite my age and size, which was a little on the skinny side. She was going to take her own life. I watched as she almost pulled the trigger.

I was definately having one of those 'What the hell?' moments.

Soon, I had grown so sick of her fear of me that I decided to pack up and leave. I didn't even bother telling her goodbye.

Two weeks later, two very unique individuals succeeded in tracking me down, and needlessly to say, I was freaked out.

Richard Crowe and Semeru. Two guys I thought my dad had killed a while ago.

The two men, both sharing the same damn eyes as my dad, had appeared out of nowhere when they approached me. The bulky, muscular Crowe, the former Colonel and lunatic, and Semeru, a native Chieftan from some island in Micronesia, didn't look dead to me. Of course, I was scared shitless.

"This is Carver's son?" Crowe asked in a caveman-like tone. "He wouldn't even make a decent snack."

"Carver didn't look like much either, but he was able to kill both of us," Semeru said in my defense. He circled around me, looking me over, then staring me straight in the eyes.

"He's got the hate that the spirit spoke of. This may not be as troublesome for us as we first thought."

Richard cracked his knuckles and had a mean grin on his face. "Then I can't wait to get started."

"Wait, what do you want with me? What's this talk about a spirit and 'the hate?'" I asked.

Semeru crossed his arms over his chest and rubbed his chin as he thought about how to answer those questions. "We are here to fulfill our ends of a bargain we made. To save time explaining, you have someone very unique expecting something grand from you, and we're here to get you ready for whatever it is."

"What bargain?"

"That we will remain alive."

I looked at both of them like a confused puppy. The last thing I remember is Semeru apologizing and a giant fist belonging to Crowe slamming me square in the nose. Everything turned to black after that.

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**A/N: Okay, so I finally got the Prologue finished. If you haven't guessed it, this story will sorta skim through the timeline until Carver is 18. That's six years that he's gonna be stuck with Crowe and Semeru. I honestly feel sorry for the kid. So, what exactly are they trying to teach him? What's with their eyes? If you haven't played Far Cry, (I would recommend Far Cry: Instincts Predator for the Xbox 360), then just look it up in the wiki and you should be able to guess it.**

**Kel, if you're reading this, I hope I'll get enough info in to give you a pretty good idea of what Adam is capable of. My submition for Adam was pretty sloppy, but by the end of this story, everything will be in tip-top shape. Please review and tell me your thoughts.**


	3. The Truth

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. This is the first real chapter. I will divide these next few chapters by their specific training sessions. If you don't know who Crowe or Semeru are, then just look them up in the Far Cry Wiki. I do not own any of the characters from Far Cry. They belong to Ubisoft.**

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_The Truth_

Okay, so when I had woken up, my dad's formerly dead nemesises, however you say that word in a plural form, filled me in on some of the missing details. They said that some spirit brought them back to life as part of a deal. They help get me in tip-top shape for something big, and the spirit will make their resurrection final.

Believable? Well, the two guys are standing here before me, and I've heard the stories of how my dad killed them. They even had the scars from their battle with him to prove it.

Crowe had hundreds of small, inch thick scars over his body from where my dad had apparently ripped the .50cal heavy machine gun from Crowe's downed chopper and had a major fire fight with Crowe, who had also done the same with the other machine gun. Semeru had the several bullet scars on him too, as well as the larger scar from where my dad threw him off the wall of an ancient temple on the side of a mountain and impaled him through the stomach on some bamboo rubble.

So, it was true that they were alive and well. Atleast I was alive...but definately not well. After their explanations of the situation, they made it clear that they were VERY determined to live again.

I gulped.

The first training they wanted to work on was unlocking my feral abilities, which included being able to run at about 40mph, jump about 40yds high or across, track at night by scent, and develop my feral strength. They say that my eyes are proof that my father's blood runs strong in my veins.

Semeru says that Marcus, or Jack as they knew him by, was very rooky with his powers, like Crowe was at the time, but his hatred and anger for them pushed him through all the obstacles they threw at him. Semeru commented that he'd even threw my old man off the side of a mountain and the bastard still came back. When he came back, Semeru had told him that he didn't have the heart, to which my father had responded "Oh, I got heart, bitch."

"So tell me, Adam Carver. Do you have the heart to achieve your destiny?"

While I didn't have the sharp tongue of my old man, I did nod my head a little. I received a punch from Crowe from behind, the blow knocking me for a loop.

"Hahaha..I've got more heart in my dick then this kid's got in his whole body. I'll enjoy breaking each and every one of his bones."

"Relax, you giant ape. We'll both get our chance."

That was the longest day of my life. They started the day with a jog..and by jog, I mean a freakin' 10 MILE RUN FOR MY LIFE! After about the first two miles, I was pretty gased, but Crowe and Semeru didn't like me slowing down so they decided to give me some motivation.

Normally, that would be a peptalk, or a promise to take me to Hooters or something, but no.. Their version of motivation involved Semeru shooting at me from the treetops with a blowgun and Crowe nipping at my heals with a machete. Needless to say, I developed my feral speed very quickly.

After that run, I looked at the two mentors. Semeru looked fine by all means, but Crowe must not have been too use to the run, cuz he had several beads of sweat rolling down his face. But when he caught my stare, he gave me a sadistic grin that made my blood run cold. I'm only 12 and I'm in a forced tutelage with these two animals? What did I do for Karma to be such a huge bitch?

* * *

After having rested my body for about thirty minutes, I was thrown into another hellsport. Jumping.

I've never hated jumping so much in my life. This place that I had first awoken in, was in the middle of some kind of jungle. All along the trees, there were platforms spaced out about 30yds between each other. However, there was no safety net down at the bottom incase I fell. No, my safety net was the ground littered with sharpened stakes waiting to catch someone.

"You are to jump...or die," Semeru said.

"No way," I said, gulping at the sight of the obstacle course before me.

"If you don't go, then you will get to spar with Crowe." I looked over at Crowe who had perked up at the mention of fighting me. Man, the guy knows how to get you motivated.

"OkayI'llgo!" I couldn't say it fast enough as I rushed to try to climb the tree. After a few failed attempts, I felt a hand throw me to my butt. Semeru was standing over me with a frustrated look.

"Your climbing skills are a disgrace. Watch me."

He looked over the tree's side and found tiny purchases just big enough for his fingers to fit in. If it wasn't for him showing me, I probably wouldn't have ever noticed them.

Showing no visible effort, he hoisted his body up, his boots giving him a good grip against the bark. "Find these small grips with your hands. Don't look for them. Feel for them. Then use your legs to push you up." He demonstrated like so and with the grace of a cat, he climbed up the tree like it was child's play.

When he got to the top of the three hundred foot tree, he looked over the side. "Now climb!"

I sighed and began the tedious task of finding little finger perches, climbing, and not falling to my death. It took me about fifteen tries, but once I finally got the hang of feeling for the finger holes, the actual lifting of my body up the tree wasn't that hard. When I had finally gotten to the top, Semeru nodded his head in approval and proceeded to demonstrate his jumping ability.

To say 'holy shitoki mushrooms' was an understatement. Instead of jumping to the nearest platform, he jumped to one three platforms away. That was like an entire football field! I heard some rustling and scraping sounds behind me. I turned around to see Crowe's massive form standing over me.

"Now you jump!" Semeru shouted. "First try the nearest platform. If you try to chicken out, then Crowe will make you regret it!"

"Hahahaaa," the big man laughed. "I hope you chicken out, little ant."

Despite my situation, I got really angry. Why the hell do I have to do this shit? Why does the spirit thing want me? Why am I risking my life for these zombies?

"The little runt's got cold feet!" Crowe yelled. A couple of moments later, Semeru landed on our platform and walked up to me. Without even a warning, he slugged the stew out of me with a left hook. I would've been knocked clear off the platform if Crowe hadn't caught me.

"Why are you afraid? This should be nothing for you. We are helping you for a reason! Not just because we want to live again, but because you'll be alone at some point and all you have to rely on is your instincts and skills. Me and Crowe have seen the world that you will be going to. It is far more dangerous then any place you know here."

I looked at him like he was mad. World I'll be going to? These guys are insane! "You've both lost it! What's this talk about different world?"

Semeru sighed and turned away. I looked to Crowe who had cleared his throat. "Semeru has been going easy on you, you runt. Because he pities you. This ghost wants to take you to this different world for some reason. It's very dangerous, with beasts of all sizes and strengths."

"This would be much easier if that spirit would show himself to you and explain everything, but he said he'll be busy with preparing things for your arrival into that other world," Semeru added.

This was too much for me. A teenager can only take so much! This should all be nonsense, but then again, so should these two guys being alive and having superhuman abilities.

"How long do I have?" I surprised both myself and the others by asking. Crowe shook his head.

"We don't know exactly. Four..five years at the most," Semeru answered. "What does it matter? It is hopeless to train someone who doesn't want to get better himself. You'll waste our time..and then we'll go back to being dead. End of story."

"Chh..this squirt is all of what Carver and that spirit expected him to be. He'll remain weak forever," Crowe said.

That comment triggered something deep and evil within me. But..I wasn't sure that what Crowe said was true. "What would you know about how my old bastard of a father thought about me. You were dead not too long ago, right?"

Crowe gave a sick grin, like he was getting pleasure from what he was about to say. "It would only make sense that we'd see that prick dad of yours if we were all dead. That spirit fella has got some strings he can pull. When he got down with us, he had nothing good to say about you. Oh sure, he might've told you some sweet things before he died, but that was a last desperate attempt to get you to grow a pair. When we talked to him, he couldn't have been more disappointed."

By the time Crowe had finished, I was about ready to explode. That rage that I had felt back when I first killed my old man was back in full force now. So, that sunavabitch was mocking me still? Even when he's dead? Well, I wouldn't have put it passed the dead beat.

Crowe was smiling as he saw my fists clench til they turned white as snow. "Yeah, use that anger, Carver. Let it fuel your determination. Who knows, maybe that spirit will bring your father back just to let you kill him again as a reward."

Semeru was holding back a small grin and slightly shaking his head. Call the man a dumb trol, but he was still clever.

"Fine! I'll do it!" I yelled out. I'm gonna show that dead bastard who he's messing with! With that murderous rage pushing me on, I took off at a sprint and jumped.

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**A/N: Well, I'm going to end the chapter there. I'll start with the training for the other things next chapter, but I do want to go ahead and get Adam to Spira, so I'll probably do like a summary or something next chap. Anyway, please review or tell me your thoughts, like Adam's dad is a real bastard or something.**


	4. The Preparation

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. I said I would do the specific training sessions and all, but that would take too much time (time that I don't want to spend), so I'm cutting it short. If you don't know who Crowe or Semeru are, then just look them up in the Far Cry Wiki. I do not own any of the characters from Far Cry. They belong to Ubisoft.**

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_The Preparation_

After somehow managing to survive my jumping experiences, I was thrown into the thick of the night. The jungles were an extremely dangerous place at night. However, now I was suppose to be the predator. My first task was to track Crowe through the underbrush. To do this, I'm suppose to be able to have some sort of predator vision to see clearly and also see the scent trails of both dead and living animals and humans.

This was actually easier then I thought. All I apparently needed was something threatening my life. Semeru was the one to discover that. While I was treking through the woods, lost, he would shoot at me from cover. Seeing as how I could see nothing, my senses must've developed at a quicker pace so I could protect myself.

Night was turned to day as every leaf, branch, tree, insect, animal, and even Semeru, was outlined with a light yellow hue. I could see his scent radiating off of him like he was on fire. The color of it was a bright red that looked like smoke.

"I can see you!" I yelled excitedly. "I can see everything, Semeru!" I laughed out in happiness. This was amazing! The smells...I could smell everything! Why did I try to reject this?

"Now that you see, finish the training!" Semeru yelled. He shot another burst from his M249 SAW(squad automatic weapon) machinegun, making me dive for cover.

"Sheesh...do something right and you get shot at.." I tried to focus my senses on my hearing. Taking a deep breath and calming myself, I could hear rustling coming a ways to the right of me. "Let's hope that him."

I used my new feral speed to quickly traverse the landscapes to close the distance. After about thirty seconds, I had to slow to a regular jog to conserve my energy. Using my enhanced speed and strength takes a toll on my body if I use it nonstop.

After slowing to a jog, I could just hear the sounds of footsteps. Looking in their direction, I could see a faint mist trailing through some more brush. That must be Crowe's scent.

I followed the scent trail through about a hundred yards of foliage until I came to a clearing about 20yds in circumference. Just as I had entered, I saw a large blob of orange disappear into the other side.

I've got him now!

I rushed after him as fast as I could, but he must've smelled him or something, because he started turning on the afterburners. His footsteps soon became to far for me to hear. How is he moving that fast for his size!

While I was still chasing after him, he had actually moved fast enough to circle around and come up behind me. I didn't know it until I was grabbed by my hair and lifted off the ground. Instinctively, I started kicking wildly but I was soon thrown about thirty yards like a football.

I hit the ground rolling backwards about ten times. When I finally cleared my head, Crowe was running at me with that sadistic smile again and he wasn't slowing down. I wanted to run, to get clear away from him, but fear had paralyzed me. I would've been pummeled to death if Semeru hadn't shot Crowe with a dart.

Though the dart did nothing too drastic, it drained all of the large man's adrenaline and stamina. He stood on wobbly legs before falling to a knee.

"Don't...get in my way," Crowe muttered. Semeru walked up to him and uppercutted Crowe, sending him a foot into the air and flat on his back.

"Now is not the time, you moron!" the chieftain yelled. "You will have your chance in due time, but he is not ready yet. So do not take the anger for his father out on him yet."

Crowe groaned a bit before getting back to his feet, hatred clear as day in his eyes. "The time can't come soon enough!" he protested, then stormed off.

Semeru walked towards me extending his hand. I gladly took it. He pulled me up only to throw a hook to the body that sent me twisting through the air.

"You gave in to your fear! You would be dead if it wasn't for me! Do not waste our time by accepting death!" he yelled. "If you do not have the hatred to fight back, then you will die!"

He didn't bother helping me up as he stormed back to the camp as well, leaving me to pick up my bruised body. I'm pretty sure I had some fractured ribs from Semeru's punch. The guy had hands like a 10lb hammer. I winced as I limped back to the camp, knowing where to go only by following Semeru's scent trail.

"I don't want to die.." I mumbled dejectedly.

* * *

_5 years later_

I stood about thirty yards from Crowe. The man's neck made gross popping sounds as he twisted it sideways. Semeru stood between us, ready to referee the fight.

This was my final test. After my humiliated failure during my first hunt, I was forced to accept my fate, and I had let the hatred grow and flourish within me. It was just about infinite now. I hated many things, but the top spot still belonged to my father. I don't know when or how, but Semeru and Crowe have successfully made me into the monster they wanted.

I didn't really care that much anymore. Why should I? The past is past between us three now. All that's left is the present, and Crowe before me. We were to fight till one of us were out cold. That was the test. I've never been able to defeat Crowe before, so I have the odds stacked against me.

"You both will fight till one can no longer move. There are weapons scattered around the field, but you will have to find them yourself. There is to be no killing." He shot a pointed stare at Crowe who shrugged nonchalantly.

"Whatever, let's just get this started. I've been waiting for this day for five years."

While I can't say I've been wanting to pummel the crap out of Crowe for five years, it's been a good three atleast. I stood crouched, my 6ft, 182lb frame poised and ready to explode like a compressed spring.

"BEGIN!" Semeru jumped out of the way to give us plenty of space. I burst foward, intending to take the fight straight to him. He cracked him knuckles, grinning.

"Alright, you little piss ant. Let's see if your balls have grown any."

I was already face to face with him as he threw a hook that I slid under. I kicked his legs out from under him and tried to get on top, but he brought up both feet and kicked me square in the chest, sending me flying across the large, circular field. Flipping myself in mid-air, I somehow brought my feet under me before I hit the ground.

As I landed, my feet made trenches about 10yds long. I wheezed for a few seconds as the power behind his kick had knocked the wind out of me. Luckily, I was able to get it before Crowe made it to me. He jumped towards me, yelling like a mad man. I saw a Colt 1911 .45 lying a few feet from me, so I rolled away from the crashing form of my opponent and grabbed it up.

Just when Crowe turned around, I quickly unloaded all twelve rounds into either his face or chest. They had the effect of a wasp sting to him as he took each one. He clawed at one of the bullets in his cheek and pulled it out of his enhanced skin, then he flicked it at me.

"I never knew how annoying it was to get shot in the face till your old man did it. This is like deja vu, cuz you look just like him now. That animal look in your eyes...that's what you need to beat me. That's how he was able to beat me."

I got his message, but him saying I reminded him of my father just set me off. I threw the gun at him, hoping to distract his attention for just a second, but instead, he just let it bounce off of his hardened skin. He brought a flying knee up, but I weaved to the side to let him go flying by me.

As he went by, I wrapped an arm around his neck and began a furious barrage of punches to his skull. He took each one with a grunt till he was able to throw me by my arm into the ground. From there, I was on the receiving end of a series of vicious stomps from his heavy boots.

Each felt like a hundred pound brick falling on me and I was coughing up blood by the fourth one. His strength still blew mine out of the water. My strength against his was like comparing the explosion of a bottle rocket against a stick of dynamite. Somehow, I got my breath enough to roll out of the way of the fist that smashed into the ground with all of the force of a thirty pound sledgehammer.

I got to my feet and started running, looking for a weapon. I wouldn't be able to beat this guy in a fist fight.

"Aww, the little boy is scared. Semeru won't save you this time, little rodent," Crowe mocked as he gave chase. I was sprinting my ass off, but the larger guy was slowly gaining on me. I focused on trying to use my predator vision and the familiar highlighted world came into view. I could see Semeru's scent emitting from a tree branch nearby as he safely watched the entire scene with a bird's eye view.

I focused on his scent trail and started looking around for anything similar. The heaviest concentration throughout the area should be where he burried the weapons. Spotting a dense, fading mist about thirty yards away, I sprinted over there and scavenged the area.

I smiled sadistically as I found a few Mk.90 hand grenades.

"Aww, the little baby found a toy? It won't change the outcome of this fight, you little shit!" I turned around to see Crowe's body spearing me almost in two. As we went flying, my fingers had accidentally pulled the pins out of the two grenades. I couldn't see them, but I knew the pins were on my fingers and the grenades weren't.

Thankfully, the first place I looked as I rolled my head over had two grenades cooking right by me. I desperately tried to get Crowe off of me, but he began pounding away at my mid-section. I was starting to feel my ribs crack from the blows, so I steadied his face and pushed my thumbs into his eye sockets.

The beast roared in pain as he got to a knee. I kicked him back, causing him to tumbled backwards and fall onto the two grenades. I rolled over and covered my head as Crowe's curses were suddenly drowned out by two deafening explosions. Dirt rained down on me as I remained prone.

That didn't last long as I was suddenly lifted up by my short hair by a massive hand. Crowe was snarling at me and I couldn't believe that he wasn't harmed from that. Besides some trembling in parts of his body, he looked relatively unscathed. In my stupor, I didn't try to avoid the fist to the gut that sent me flying backwards into a tree, impaling me through the abdomen on a branch.

I coughed up much blood and cried out in pain. I pushed through it and managed to break the limb off the tree, somewhat freeing me. Unfortunately, Crowe lifted me up from the end of the stick from behind me and slammed me into that same tree like an axe. My body shattered the outer layers of the tree, sending wood splinters flying everywhere.

I was swung again, this time in the ground, and the stick must've broke as I heard a crack. My adrenaline and desire to live gave me the strength to get to a knee and send an upper-cut straight to Crowe's nuts, illiciting a loud groan from the behemoth. I saw a Remington .870 combat shotgun lying to the side. While my opponent was stunned, I grabbed it and started unloading .12gauge slug after slug into Crowe's chest.

BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. BOOM! Ca-chink. *CLICK*

"Shit!"

Round after round, I had pumped into that man's body, and with each round a chunk of flesh exploded from his chest, but the man refused to stay down. He grunted and roared in defiance and lunged at me. I dodged to the side and swung the butt of the shotgun down on his head like an axe.

*CRACK*

Like glass, the butt of the gun shattered against the skull of Crowe, but my persistence seemed to have paid off. Crowe stumbled briefly to a knee, but he got back up. Still, it was a stumble. And as his back was turned to me, I finally saw the damage from those two grenades. The shrapnel from the grenades had ripped dozens of small holes into his back, causing tons of blood to ooze out.

I began sprinting away to hopefully find a new weapon. Using my predator vision, I saw a large mist of scent about 50yds away. Not waiting for Crowe to regain his bearings, I sprinted after it. However, when I saw what I had found, I shouted with glee.

When Crowe was sprinting towards me, he skidded to a halt as I hefted up a Barret M107 .50cal Anti-Tank Rifle. This beast of a gun shot APIR (armor-piercing incendiary rounds) that could burn half inch holes through steel plates.

"Time to show you how much I really hate you, Crowe."

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Huge holes were torn into Crowe's chest, many of the massive shells hitting him as he rolled out of the way. About eight out of the fifteen shells hit home, knocking him back a couple of feet each time or bringing him down to a knee. After my gun made the familiar clicking noise, he took the brief reprieve to stay on a knee and recover.

Oh hell no. I'm not gonna let him get off that easily when I've got him hurtin' bad now. When I got to him, I started unloading haymakers on him, each one knocking him back from their incredible strength. He retaliated with a flurry of punches, but they were lacking in speed.

I weaved through the swinging appendages and I noticed my own body wasn't moving as fast. Understandable, since I've probably lost a liter of blood, or more. The fast healing of my body helped to stop the blood loss by sealing off the wounds about a minute after each wound was sustained.

"You can feel it too, worm. That feeling is what death feels like," Crowe said, a smile still on his face. "Now that we're both weak, let's end this like men."

Yeah, about that. As you can guess, the only reason Semeru put weapons out was to shorten the length of time he'd have to wait for our fight to be over. By how much? Well, the longest I've gone in a fight with Crowe till I blacked out was about two hours. That's a fucking long time if you're the one fighting.

"Yeah,..sure," I said in between deep breaths. Though as we were talking, we were still fighting, throwing punches and kicks that would shatter every bone in a normal human's body. After what felt like forever, the heavier wounds on Crowe started taking a greater toll on his body. His movements became more sluggish and his breathing heavier.

I rocked his senses with a hook to the jaw and he stumbled to a knee. He tried to stand back up but I connected another hard punch to his face, sending him to a knee again. He lunged back at me but I did a spinning motion, coming inside of his punch and landing an elbow to his left eye.

I felt the bone slightly crack under my blow so I started focusing all of my punches on that one spot. I punched him again and he stumbled back a few steps but I followed, continuing to throw haymaker after haymaker into his temple. He kept stumbling to a knee after a few backwards steps.

I put all of my being into the next punch, my bones nearly breaking from tightening my fist so much, and when I connected, I felt the bone around his left eye shatter and bone sprayed out. He fell in what seemed like slow motion to me. He laid motionless on the ground, knocked clean out.

Semeru jumped from his spot and landed among us two warriors. He checked Crowe's pulse and confirmed that he was still alive, but barely. He looked at me and saw I wasn't much better.

"I believe you are ready for the final test now."

I nodded and swallowed some of my blood roughly. "That's great," I said, then blacked out.


	5. Arrival

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. I said I would do the specific training sessions and all, but that would take too much time (time that I don't want to spend), so I'm cutting it short. If you don't know who Crowe or Semeru are, then just look them up in the Far Cry Wiki. I do not own any of the characters from Far Cry. They belong to Ubisoft.**

* * *

_Reality and Dreams; Where is the Line?_

I stood up on my own, several days later, with all my wounds bandaged up. Crowe looked at me from about ten feet away and gave me a nod of respect. I couldn't help but feel a great sense of pride from that subtle gift.

Semeru was standing in front of me, chanting something incoherent loudly. He was on his knees in front of a small fire and the smell of something pungent filled the air. After about three minutes of this, he rose to his feet and came towards me.

"It is time for you to begin your destiny, Adam. But first, you must know the truth."

I looked at him quizzically as I couldn't imagine what he was talking about.

"This world...is not real, yet it is. The entire life you have been living has all been a sort of test by the spirit who has such great interest in you. When offered the choice of choosing to have power at the expense of your personal safety and sanity, you accepted. To decide what sort of powers you would get, you were sent to this world of dreams."

I looked at him with slacked jaws. "What?"

"Now that your dream is finally coming to an end, the time given to choose your power now up, it has now been decided by the spirit what dark powers you shall possess in the other world. You not remembering anything about your real life was a side-effect of entering this dream world, to maximize the effectiveness of the test."

I still stood in stunned silence, but now that Semeru told me the truth, I guess all of my memories started coming back to me. And the one that stuck out the most at this moment was "WHAT THE HELL? This is some real Inception bullshit!"

I face palmed myself for what I just did. "Crap, now that I've said it, they'll probably pop up like-" gunshots interrupted me as four guys in suits came bursting from the bushes. They immediately began looking around and finally spotted me.

"We've found him!" Leonardo DiCaprio yelled, signaling the others to get me while one stayed behind to cover their rear.

"Christ..."I said, rubbing my temples. "Please tell me they aren't here for why I think they are."

Semeru and Crowe both looked very confused by these guys' sudden arrival. In an instant, I was dragged off like a sack of potatoes through the woods. Before I knew it, we were flying.

Then I looked over my shoulder.

Not flying..falling. We were all falling a couple hundred feet off a cliff. "!"

As we hit the ground, I suddenly woke up to see two things: my room in my apartment, and a ghastly-lookin' grim reaper fellow. He was floating there calmly, just smiling at me with black teeth.

"Ahh, I see you have finally returned. I'm sorry for the sudden intrusion, but your time was up and you _did_ mention Inception."

I groaned and rubbed my headache. "Maybe I should mention my foot up your ass, Ansem." That's right. His name was Ansem, I remembered.

I had just gotten kicked out of the house by my parents for allowing my anger to get the better of me and beating a couple of pricks to near death. It was a street fight, of course, so I doubt the cops will ever find out. Somehow, my parents always did, though.

"Would you mind giving me a good explanation for where I just spent the last five or six years?"

"Of course," he said, that smirk never leaving his face. I laid back on my bad as he sat at my feet. "I offered you the chance to have a darkness power, however..you have very peculiar tastes. I was not able to decide what to give you, so I constructed that dream world you were in.

You were put into a fictional world, a world you know as Far Cry. That was what your heart materialized."

I rose a brow. Far Cry, huh? I'm not that surprised. I just got that Instincts Predator game a few days ago. I've been playing the crap out of it.

"What I've learned from your sleep was this: you highly value strength of body over strength of weapon. That is a rare thing, as most people would've tried to create some large, flashy power. They almost never think about the fact that even with that large power, a simple bullet to the head would put them down for good."

He cracked a wicked smile and let out a dark chuckling. "I've also learned that you wish in this life to make everyone feel your pain and hatred. And I've thought of a nice way to do that, along with something extra. But, we will get to that when we're in the other world. Is there anything you'd like to do before we go?"

I nodded. "Yeah, just a minute."

I grabbed my piece of crap cellphone and dialed my brother, Brandon. I hate the fat asshole more then anybody else. He's always lying or stealing something, and his hygiene is always offending my nostrils or eyes. After a couple of rings, he finally picked up the phone.

"Hello," came the groggy answer. Yep, he was drinking again.

"You're a fat, lying, cheating, worthless, cock-sucking, gluttonous, lazy, piece of shit. You've always made my life hell for me when I was little, never once taking up for me, but now you, or anybody else, will never see me again."

I hung up the phone and Ansem was cackling like a madman. "That..was rich! HAHAHAHA!"

That was a start, but I wasn't finished. "Hey, could you take me somewhere real quick. There's one last thing I want to do." He recovered from his laughing fit enough to give a decent response.

"If it's ANYTHING like that phone call, I'd take you to the Oval Office, Lucas."

"You know what? Let's keep it as Adam. I never really liked my real name," I admitted. I really didn't. I hated it. After having two sons, my mom was desperately wanting a girl, but she got me. Talk about a let down. She didn't even suggest a name for me, but my dad did. He was one of the few people who actually cared about me, and that I respected.

"But, I can guarantee...it's gonna be good." Ansem nodded and touched his fingers to my mind. He found where I wanted to go and took me there.

In a flash of light similar to the mind transfer in Avatar, I arrived in an unfamiliar place in Starkville. There was a girl that I'd met while working at the waterpark in Choctaw, Mississippi, that I really wanted to meet again. We had become friendly towards each other and all. She was easily the hottest girl I'd ever seen while working there.

Some voices were coming from outside the door. That's when I realized I was in her room. I shot Ansem a hard look, but he was just grinning maniacally. Soon, Bailey walked through her door and shut it. She turned around and yelped in surprise when she saw me and a ghost in her room.

"LUCAS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE! HOW ARE YOU IN HERE?"

I shut her talking up by kissing her roughly on her lips. Her eyes went wide but after a few seconds, she started kissing me back. Our tongues battled back and forth as her hands started exploring my body just as my hands explored her tanned body. I gave her round bottom a firm squeeze, causing her to press harder against me. I held her tight with my other arm, causing her C-cups to press up against my chest, giving the illusion that they were bigger.

After about three minutes of that, we broke it apart to get some air. "I've been wanting to do that for weeks, Bailey."

"Well, after that, I think you'll get a lot more chances, Lucas," she said, smilingly slyly. It slowly disappeared when I started frowning.

"There probably won't be another chance, Bailey. That ghost over there..." she looked over at Ansem, who had a video camera.

"Oh, don't mind me, now. I'm just gonna video tape this and put it on the internet," he said in the voice of that gay guy from Family Guy.  
If this was an anime, I would've sweat-dropped.

"Yeah, that guy is gonna take me away for a while. Probably forever. I just used my last moments to come here and do what we just did," I explained.

She looked both confused and upset. "What? Take you where?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't even know, baby. All I know is that I've already been through a lot of shit to get ready for this. I'm really glad I got to meet you before I left though."

I gave her another gentle kiss on her lips, but she pulled my head and crushed hers against mine. When that kiss ended, needless to say, I was dazed. She looked over at the grinning ghost. "How much time does he have left?"

Ansem checked an invisible watch on his wrist and made a few 'hmmmms'. "I'd say about ten minutes..if we are to be on schedule. Why do you ask?" He, of course, already knew the answer.

"That's plenty of time!" Bailey declared, then went towards the door. She opened it and pointed out. "Alright, ghost. Give us our ten minutes!" she commanded, her voice thundering across the room. The death glare she was giving him made the spirit go into a cold sweat.

"Right. Don't worry, I'll just leave this camera here...suspiciously turned towards the bed..." He found himself yanked by his cloak and thrown out of the room by the frustrated woman. He rolled over on his back and was grinning like a fool.

This was definitely worth the trip.

* * *

Ten minutes later and the door still was locked. Ansem paced back and forth impatiently as Lucas and Bailey's moans of pleasure had both stopped about two minutes ago.

"What is taking so long? We have a schedule to keep to!" Seconds later, the door opened and his student walked out with a slight limp and the biggest shit-eating grin on his face that he's ever seen.

"Are you finish yet?" Ansem asked. I looked over at him, feeling like a million bucks.

"Hell yeah. Let's go!"

Ansem grabbed my shoulder and with his other hand, he swiped the air. A black rip appeared in the air and he threw us both into it. After we disappeared, the hole sealed back up.

Expecting a falling sensation, I was pretty surprised that we were already in the other world, I supposed. In fact, something about it looked pretty familiar. We were the ruins of a large city that was half-submerged by water. It was easily the most breath-taking sight I've ever seen.

I looked around and saw the ocean to one side, and a great mountain range on the other side. I was having an insane deja-vu moment cuz I know that I've been here before. Then something white caught my eyes.

It looked like a small, bright, atokirina from Avatar, but larger. There's only one other thing that looked like those, and when I realized where exactly Ansem had taken me, I started laughing aloud.

"Hahaha, you've got to be kidding me! You brought me to SPIRA?"

Ansem clapped his hands softly. "You got it in one, Adam. You're just outside of the Zanarkand ruins right now. I wanted to make sure we would run into anybody yet, cuz this next part will take some time for you to do."

"You mean my powers?" I asked, the excitement barely being contained in my voice.

He nodded and pulled a dark cylinder from his robe. It was emitting a dark essence, as if the container was about to burst. It even showed its instability by emitting a large pulse of dark intent across the landscape. Only a few beings were actually able to sense it, and the weaker ones coward from it.

"What's that?"

He held it out as if on display. "I was actually very busy while you were in your dream state. In fact, I was there since day one of your adventure. This is all of your wrath collected in one place, at one time. I figure you wouldn't have the wrath it'd take to make you into what I needed you to be in just your real body, so I took the opportunity to not let 7yrs of hate go to waste."

I looked at him with wide eyes. "You, sir...are pretty clever."

"I aim to please," he said, making a small bow. "However, this is separate from your powers. This much hatred would literally destroy a normal man. I will insert this into your being after I've given you your powers. That way, your body and mind will be able to take the strain. Do you understand?"

I nodded, though slightly nervous as to what my powers would be. If I had to guess, it'd be something like in Far Cry, since that's where I spent the past seven years.

"As for your powers, there will be two main ones, and a smaller one. The first is called 'SuperPredator.' You will have most of your abilities from when you were dreaming."

'Knew it,' I thought, smirking.

"The next one is called 'The Eyes of God.' You will be able to see just anything within your focused vision. This even includes 'soul peeking', which will let you see one's soul by using their eyes as windows to peep through. You won't be able to read minds, but once you learn the signs, you'll be able to tell alot about a person," he explained.

I was gobsmacked. "Fuhrer Bradley, step aside. There's a new sheriff in town." Ansem smirked.

"So, are you ready. I will start with the SuperPredator first."

I planted my feet firmly and gave him the biggest, cheesiest grin I could muster. "Bring it on, Bones."

He gave a deep chuckle and plunged his hand into my chest. I was startled at first, obviously, but the brief pain was soon replaced by energy and vitality. I was soon loving every second of it.

Several red web-like things shot from the ground and started cocooning me from the feet up. By the time it got to my chest, Ansem placed his hand over my eyes, blacking my view.

"You're doing well. I'm giving you the second power. Your body will stay in this cocoon til it the powers have been fully integrated into your body. These will take days. Then, I will give you this hatred. For your well-being, I will keep you in this cocoon. It will feed you the wrath at a rate that will ensure your survival. The completion of this process will take perhaps a week. Do not worry about being interrupted. I'll see to it that you are kept alone. Till then, adios."

I had felt my eyeballs quivering from some strain or force while he was talking, but soon my entire body was cocooned. Then, my consciousness when black.


	6. Power Manifestation

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah.  
**

**Yeah, so how'about that plot-twist. I will model this guy's personality and decision making as if I was in his shoes.  
**

* * *

Over a week has passed since the transformation began. Since then, Ansem has sensed several happenings in the world around him. His nose could smell blood from one side of the planet to the next. And something just happened, like a massive massacre.

From the smell of only a single species, it was a slaughter for them.

'Hmmmm...Lucas..I mean, 'Adam', would like to hear about this. If it's who I think it is, then I can imagine that he won't be too happy.'

_A week later_

After having to kill off a few monsters that got too close, as well as have a run-in with some very interesting creatures (**That'd be where you'd have come in, TUC**), Ansem was now waiting for Adam's rebirth into this world.

The cocoon started cracking from top to bottom like glass. There was the slight sound of banging on the inside. The thought was confirmed when a fist punched through the hard shell of the cocoon.

And it was soon followed by another. The fists retreated back in and for a few seconds, silence reigned over the site.

BAM!

The cocoon broke down the middle into two halves with Adam in the middle of it. He was completely naked as he stood on two powerful legs and took in the world around him. He breathed in the air, looked over the land, felt the earth with his toes.

Then..he smiled. Taking a deep breath, he let out a massive, almost inhuman roar, like that of a behemoth, that echoed throughout the immediate area.

"A little bit too theatrical, don't ya think?" Ansem asked. Adam looked towards the ghost and cracked a shark-like grin.

"Aw, come on. You can't tell me that wasn't awesome. It was alot cooler then breaking from the cocoon and acting like a new born calf, right?"

Ansem cackled. "Hahaha, yes, you are right. I knew there was a reason I liked you, besides the obvious hatred you have for most things. So, how is the new body treating you?"

_First person_

To be honest, I'd never felt better. All of my senses felt like they were amplified ten fold. And my eye sight, I could see everything. My sight before, without my contacts, was 20/200. If I had to guess what it was now, I'd say -200/20.

It was like an antennae TV compared to IMAX.

"I feel great." My stomach growled loudly. "And hungry. You got anything to eat?"

Ansem held out his empty hands. "Do I look like a soup kitchen? Go hunt yourself something. With the SuperPredator power, you can track by scent and pheromones, and ingest uncooked meat without fear of disease or parasites. Also, with your Eyes of God, you can see by regular vision, or by heat, negative vision, or "

I gave him a bigger grin. "Ya'know, I always wondered what a behemoth steak tasted like. Am I going to have to kill it with my bare hands?"

The ghost tossed me two sword handles. "This is where your next power will come into play. With all of that hatred and wrath, with some concentration, you can manifest them into the blades for these handles. Wrath has all kinds of forms, so can your weapons."

I looked at the sword hilts in awe. "Jackpot." I focused on what I wanted my hate to take the form of and with no effort at all, two blades materialized on the hilts.

I looked at them, and they looked just like the swords from King Bradley in Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood.

"Swords?" Ansem questioned. "I thought you were more of a gun-jockey."

"It's true that I love guns, but I love melee weapons way more. Though I never got to practice with them much, I had a kendo stick for a while and I loved it alot more then my rifle. It felt more natural and graceful."

"I understand completely," he said. "Now, let's go get dinner."

"Yeah," I agreed, "You definitely need some meat on your bones."

I started laughing at my own joke, but received a slap upside my head for it.

"Hardie-har-har, Adam. Let's go see if your as natural a hunter as I hope you are. You shouldn't have any trouble finding a behemoth in the caves up there," he said, gesturing up the mountain trail. "And don't worry about the Guardian, either."

"Right," I said and took off. I wasn't sprinting as fast as I could, but I was easily 3x faster then when I was a normal guy. 'Heck yeah. I'mma bout to kill me something. I wonder if they're as tough in real life as they are in the game?'

Just as he said, the Guardian didn't attack me. In fact, I didn't even see it. That kinda disappointed me. I was really wanted to see how well I would do against a boss monster.

Entering the cave, my hearing and vision powers automatically kicked in. I could hear many sounds near me, though not perfectly. My vision was better in the low light then it was in daylight oddly enough.

I could see many heat signatures. 'Hmm, Ansem said I could see in different visions. How do I switch them?'

I closed my eyes to think about it for a moment, but something better happened. I was instantly seeing in negative vision. I opened my eyes and it was back to heat vision. I closed them again and it was negative vision.

"Kick ass," I said, trying not to yell. So even if I close my eyes, I can see! How cool is that? But what about if they are covered?

I planted my hand over my eyes and disappointingly, I couldn't see anything other then my skin cells.

'Dang. So I can't see through physical objects? Bummer.' My stomach growling reminded me what I was here to do. "Right. Time to eat me a behemoth."

I scoured the cave system for about ten minutes and still no luck. But then I got an idea.

"Hey, I've got an idea. Nothing like using live bait." I bit my thumb. I was surprised by the toughness of my skin, but I was still able to draw blood. I bit it till blood was freely running and I wiped it over my face.

As if the smell of my blood made it think I was injured, a behemoth jumped from the ceiling of the tall cavern, startling me.

"Woah, what the heck were ya doin' there?"

"RAAAWWWWWRRRR!" it responded.

Okay, a behemoth was definitely bigger in person then in the game. It let out another roar, but I challenged it with one of my on.

My grin was as wide as possible and I clenched my fists in preparation. It lunged at me and tried to swipe me aside with its giant claws, but I caught its fist with both hands.

Sure, I was straining a bit to perform the feat, but it seemed to confuse the beast. Grinning, I wrapped my arms around its limb and rolled underneath, twisting the arm and forcing the behemoth into a face-plant. It was force to roll onto its back to alleviate the pain.

I jumped onto its throat and began pounding my superpowered fists and elbows into its throat. The surprising strength behind my blows was more then enough to cause the larger beast to make choking noises as I pounded away at its Adam's apple.

With its attention diverted to trying to recover, I began unloading on its face. Its hard bone caused pain to jolt through my fists, but it was anything I couldn't ignore. It was obviously feeling the blows, as my punches were knocking its head left and right like a speed bag.

With a roar, I threw an uppercut that knocked its jaw upwards and head back. In blind rage, it snapped at me, but my eyes easily saw it coming. Seeing a rather obvious weakspot, I straightened my hand from a fist and plunged it into the behemoth's eye.

It gave a yell of agony as I ripped the eye out and bit the veins connecting it to its body. It thrashed about wildly, roaring in pain. Eventually, roars turned to whimpers as it finally calmed down but it ran into a corner of the cave, not use to moving with one eye.

I cornered it, my grin still in place as the adrenaline rush felt too great. However, seeing the large beast whimpering in a corner struck a deep chord in me. Instantly, my bloodlust and hunger were forgotten.

If anyone ever saw me and met with me, they'd never suspect that I had a soft spot for animals. Insects, reptiles, or mammals, it didn't matter. If I was ever in a position of power over them, I'd never abuse it. I had always valued their company over that of my human companions most of the time. Maybe it was because animals never pissed me off. I had no reason to hate them.

That same characteristic stayed with me, even with 7yrs of hate in me. It's what also caused me to approach it with no ill-intent. It cowered before me, seeing me as the more dominant predator. But I did not lift a fist to it.

Instead, I patted its head. It looked at me with the most confused look, and at the moment, I did my first soul peak. I saw mainly just animal instincts, as would be expected. Fear and submission were the most abundant at the moment.

As I continued to rub its head and even coo soft sounds to it, that fear started to evaporate. I did this for an unknown amount of time, but eventually, the behemoth got the idea that I wasn't going to kill it.

It took a tentative step towards me and I brought up my other hand and made it face me. It was an adolescent behemoth, judging from its behavior. Probably just released from its nest to live on its own.

I started backing up, coaxing the beast to come from the corner. It did so slowly, watching me closely with its remaining eye.

"Thatta boy. Thatta good boy. Come'on. I'm not gonna hurt'cha." His body started to loosen up and his steps were more confident.

I stared him right in the eyes, my face inches from his forehead. "Alright, let's make a deal. I've a soft spot for animals and I don't like to kill them unless I'm starving or they hurt someone I care about."

It looked like it could understand my tone. 'Pretty smart creature.'

"Now, with one eye, your chances of survival are pretty slim. So, you follow me, your Alpha, and I'll keep you alive. Deal?"

I don't know if it understood me word for word, but it got the impression that its chances for survival were better with me, so it nudged its head down in a submissive gesture.

While I was grinning from ear to ear on the outside, the inside was about a thousand times worse. 'HELL YEAH, I JUST GOT A PET BEHEMOTH!'

I patted him on the head and hopped on its neck. It raised up and looked back at me confused. If I was Alpha, why was I riding on its back like a cub?

"Come'on, boy. Let's go huntin'," I said, pointing forward. It did the equivalent of a shoulder shrug and began moving.

"Sweeeeeeeeeeet!" I yelled with my hands in air, waving like I just don't care.

* * *

Ansem had been waiting patiently for the return of his creation. Adam has been gone for about thirty minutes now. Finally, he threw his hands up in exasperation.

"I swear, if that boy got himself eaten, I'm gonna bring his soul back just so I can kill him myself."

As he started his way towards the mountain, he saw a strange sight that would've made his eyes pop out of his head if he had any. Adam was riding on a behemoth's head while on the back was another behemoth, this one having been brutally eviscerated and half-eaten.

"What in Yevon?" Ansem asked himself.

_First person_

After I got my new buddy used to the riding thing, we had went hunting. Apparently, another, older behemoth figure he could just come and steal whatever meal my buddy probably got. The larger guy and come strollin' in like he owned the cave.

Imagine his surprised when he was attacked by a younger behemoth and a human. He fought ferociously, but he couldn't ever get a bead on me as my smaller size and greater speed made me hard to eat.

The fight ended when my buddy held him down and I slit the behemoth's throat wide open with my swords. Then, we proceeded to carry the corpse back. Well, my pet new friend did.

"Hey, what's up, Ansem? I hope you're hungry, cuz I know I am!" I yelled, grinning at the dumbstruck expression on the spirit's face.

When we pulled up, Ansem was still standing there silently as I used my strength, along with a good perch, to pull the large carcass off the back of my mount.

"This here's Charlie. He helped me catch this unlucky fellow." Ansem looked at the behemoth referred to as 'Charlie', then at the carcass, then at me, then back at 'Charlie', then the carcass, then 'Charlie', then me.

Then he just shook his head and started laughing. He looked like he was enjoying himself laughing, so I joined him, although more sarcastically and over dramatic. Charlie looked at both of us with more confusion, wondering if the sounds we were making were the language we spoke or challenging roars.

"Oh God, you continue to make me proud," Ansem stated as he calmed down from his laughing fit.

I laughed even more. "Who said I was doing it for your boney ass?"

We continued to insult each other as we devoured our fill of behemoth meat. I cut off the horns to keep them as trophies and skinned a large portion of hide from what wasn't affected by our appetite to make me some underwear.

Ansem was holding in his laughter when I had finished.

Okay, so underwear wouldn't be the correct word. It was more of a loincloth. What? I loved to walk around naked at my house whenever I was alone. Who wouldn't?

"What are you, Tarzan?" Ansem asked.

"Yeah, but you sure ain't no Jane," I countered. "So where to now?"

Ansem looked out towards Kilika Island's direction in deep thought, but shook his head. 'He's not ready yet. It's time for a more thorough test.'

"We're going to Kremlinok."

o.O-me "Never heard of it. It sounds Russian."

"It is Russian. It's a fortress built and manned by over a thousand men and women, all either pirates, bandits, mercenaries, murderers, renegades, etc. They're led by their king, a person I had brought here many years ago, just like you."

O.O-me again. "Wait, I'm not the first then?"

He sighed. "He name was Sergei Garukavich. He was an orphan who was adopted into the Spetznas special forces. He was eventually kicked out for being too weak. That was when I came to him with the same offer I gave you. Like you, he accepted and I gave him the strength he wanted. I had hopes that he would carry out what I know you will, but instead, he sits in his fortress, wasting his talents by fucking whores and raiding travelers. He is undeserving of the power I gave him."

"So you want me to take it back," I concluded. He nodded.

"Precisely. I want him to remember just who he fucked with. The reason I haven't done it myself is because I want you to. I want him to feel as weak as he did when I first came to him."

"So, is that the whole reason why I'm here?" I asked, a little put out. Thankfully, no, I was wrong.

"No, my plan for you is much broader and worldwide. He will just be the test you're wanting to see what you're capable of."

I grinned and popped my fingers. "Then we're wasting time. I always wanted a fortress for my birthday."

"Your birthday was almost two months ago," Ansem said.

"Yeah, and it sucked ass. Don't remind me," I said, a vein throbbing on my forehead. "This will more then make up for it. Just point me in the right direction."

He pointed towards some mountain ranges by the ocean side on the horizon. I hopped on Charlie's back, but when Ansem tried to, Charlie growled at him.

"I guess you gotta walk till Charlie starts trusting you more," I mocked. He gave me the bird.

I laughed at him and pointed straight ahead. "C'mon, Charlie! Second star to the right, and on till morning!"

Charlie took off with surprising speed, having caught my excitement. Ansem simply stayed by our side by floating. I sensed he was rolling his eyes at my statement.

"We're going to Kremlinok, not Never Never Land." Charlie growled at him again, causing him to give the behemoth the middle finger as well.

I simply laughed and mentally readied myself for the epic battle that was to come. This Sergei will be the first of thousands that will feel my wrath. Just the thought of it got the hatred inside me swirling into a malevolent storm of dark desires.

**And that's the end of this chapter. Please review and tell me what you think. PLEASE! Heck, just anything will do.**


	7. I am King

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah.  
**

**Yeah, so how'about that plot-twist. I will model this guy's personality and decision making as if I was in his shoes.  
**

* * *

It took a couple of days to finally arrive at the front gates. To say the place was huge was an understatement. (**Look up Fortress, Ace Combat 5, on goodle or youtube. That's what it looks like. Only exceptions are that the ocean's on one side, and there aren't any cranes or tanks.)**

"This fortress is freaking amazing!" I yelled. I instantly fell in love with it. I wanted it. I couldn't wait to take this bastard down. I always wanted to kill a king.

"It'll be yours when you kill Sergei," Ansem announced. "This fortress has a rule. Its king is always the best warrior. This can change at anything. Anyone has a right to challenge the leader in battle for a chance to usurp the throne."

"And all's failed for the past years," I said. "Outstanding. Let's get this show on the road."

I could already feel the hate stirring within me, clawing at my insides to get out. I actually grimaced from the pain but it soon subsided when I materialized my swords briefly to assure it that it would be free soon.

It took us a couple of bangings on the massive front gate to finally get an answer. In the distance, my ears could make out the noise of cheering and cussing.

"It sounds like they're having a party," I said. Ansem nodded, but disappeared.  
"Hey, where are you going?"

"It would be best if I wasn't seen," he replied. "I'll help if you find yourself in a pickle. If you are wondering where I am, just close your eyes."

I closed my eyes and my negative vision kicked in. Unlike with my normal vision, I picked Ansem up very well with this vision.

"I'm guessing you can see me now. This is the only vision you'll be able to use to see me when I'm transparent. You'll also be able to see other spirits as well," he explained.

I grinned. 'I really do have the eyes of God.'

"WHO ARE YOU, TRAVELER?" a voice yelled from the top of the gate.

His eyes nearly popped out when he saw the massive piece of meat between my legs (i.e. Charlie). "STATE YOUR BUSINESS OR WE'LL BLOW YOU TO PIECES!"

I grinned and patted Charlie's head. "I'M HERE TO KILL THAT PUSSY, SERGEI GARUKAVICH!"

As if on que, the heavy gates slowly opened. Just enough for Charlie to squeeze through, but we were soon in the fortress. I closed my eyes and saw Ansem floating by my side. He looked at me and nodded his head.

When the gate closed, I met the welcoming party of about twenty individuals who looked made up of mercenaries and hunters. They looked not nervous, but wary, of the behemoth and me riding it.

That's good. If they were cowering, then they wouldn't deserve to stay in the 'soon-to-be-mine' fortress.

I got on my feet and hopped off the back of Charlie, doing a front-flip to get a feel and to show off my acrobatic ability. Lord knows, unless it was a diving board, I couldn't do a front-flip and come out of it unharmed.

They raised their weapons at me, a mixture of rifles and spears, and I smirked. I'd been through tougher. Hell, I still remember the pain of living and training with Crowe and Semeru like it was yesterday.

"Get those sorry weapons out of my face. I'm acting within the Kremlinok's rules, aren't I? I wish to challenge that bitch of a king Sergei so I can have his throne..and get some personal satisfaction from it."

They looked at each other, debating what to do since I WAS not doing anything against their rules.

"What do you know of King Garukavich?" one of them asked.

I kept my grin, well, it was more of a smirk now. "I know he's not from here. I know that where he came from, he was cast out for being weak. I know he seems alot stronger now, but he's wasting the talents that he and all of you have. Tell me, what's the most daring, destructive thing he's done as king?"

They talked amongst themselves. Whether they knew I could hear every word or not, they didn't care. There were a few who still opposed the way Sergei ran things. Apparently, that one in particular had come here hoping to take his revenge against some soldiers of Yevon, yet the 'king' just stayed in his room fornicating.

Finally, an agreement had been made. The one from before stepped up and motioned for me to follow him.

I looked back at Charlie and held up my hand as he tried to follow. "No, boy. You stay here. Try not to eat the guards, okay?"

He made a noise that sounded like a growl and a whine, then he stalked off and laid down by the gate entrance. His very presence still kept the guards unnerved.

As I made my way out of the tunnel within the wall, we came into a massive, wide-open area within the walls. Since the fortress was made in a circular shape, the field itself was circular. And the first thing we met were two large machina cannons that stood guard.

It looked to be manned by about five people, but I couldn't be sure. I recognized them as the same type of cannons that the Al-bhed tried to use against Sin, though smaller. There were ten more grouped in pairs around the perimeter of the field.

There were about six or seven massive buildings spaced evenly in a circular pattern in the field, encircling some kind of pit in the ground. I could see hundreds of people gathered around it, sitting along the walls and edges.

In the distance, going from one side of the massive, 100yd tall, 50yd wide, stone wall to the wall on the opposite side of the fortress, was a large causeway-like bridge that stretched over the field.

And beyond that were two massively tall towers. The shorter one was probably 700ft tall and about a hundred feet wide at the tip, growing wider the lower it went. The second one behind it was about 1300ft tall and 150ft wide at the top, getting wider the lower it went. They were very steep towers.

All along the walls of the fortress, there were bunkers and areas dug from the mountains and such, showing that there was more to this fortress then at first glance. And within those bunkers and along the walls were dozens and dozens of smaller cannons. I looked back and saw atleast ten of them sitting en-sheltered on top of the front gate, waiting for the call to be put to use.

I gave a low whistle. This castle was practically impervious from any frontal ground assault. If I remembered correctly, most of Spira abhor machina. So that means that this Sergei enlisted Al-bheds into his army.

'That was pretty smart thinking. This technology could easily hold off an army of tens of thousands. It's Fort Knox on steroids and HGH.'

"Do you think you can kill him, stranger?" my guide asked as we made our way closer to the pit.

"Of course. We aren't so different, him and I," I stated. "I want this fortress and the army it houses. I am going to use it to do what Sergei was meant to do before me."

"What was he meant to do?" the guy asked, clearly interested.

"He was meant to dominate Spira. That was what he agreed to do when he was given his power. He has had many years and have wasted them, so I'm here to accept his permanent resignation," I explained.

Inside, I was giving myself a high-five. I can't believe I thought of that on a dime, with some help from Ansem explaining the situation to me earlier. That sounded so badass, even the spirit next to us was impressed.

"Then I will cheer for you," the man said. He gave me a smile and told me to stay close as we reached the outer layer of the crowd.

Seeing as I was a new guy, I wouldn't have stuck out that much to the crowd. Buuuuuttt...seeing as how I was only wearing a loincloth made out of the fur of a behemoth, I drew some attention. I probably should have thought this through some more.

There were plenty of women as there were men, all not bad-looking. Many just stared at me like a piece of eye candy while some of the more straightforward women whistled at me and slapped my butt, which caused me to jerk forward. Be that as it may, I was still somewhat prudish.

Now, I had a pretty decent body when I was in my first life. I worked out, biked, ran, and played sports, so I was in shape. But after the transformation, my body became more fit to bear the title 'SuperPredator'. Along with some other areas, I think.

When we got to the edge of the pit, I saw a nice gruesome scene. There were atleast five bodies pummeled and mutilated, all spread out around one monster of a fellow.

This guy had short grey hair and several scars over his body. He was about 6'8 compared to my 6'3, and he had to have had atleast 80lbs on me. He had a guy lifted up above him, yelling to the crowd.

"THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CHALLENGE YOUR KING!" He dropped the man, throwing his knee up into the unlucky soul's back. A loud pop sound was heard, causing me to wince.

The guy from before saw my wince. "You having second thoughts?"

I gave him a straight face. "No, that just looks like it feels good. Can't wait to get down there. Is there a line or something?"

He shook his head. "Sergei just took out the line," he answered. I couldn't help but chuckle. I handed him my trophies from earlier and told him to hold on to them. He took'em and stepped aside.

I took a couple of long steps and jumped from the edge. My action surprised everyone around, thinking that I had just tried to commit suicide. Though the pit was just 300ft wide and 40ft deep and only accessible by a drop ladder, someone could easily break a bone jumping from that height.

_Third person_

Sergei was enjoying his victory when he felt the spotlight being taken from him with a huge thud. He turned around and saw a nearly naked man, a young adult about a few years younger then him, on one knee.

His grin erupted on his face. "A NEW VICTIM!" he yelled to the crowd, drawing some cheers from the spectators. "HE SHALL MEET THE SAME FATE AS THESE WEAKLINGS!"

He turned back to the new opponent but the first thing he saw was a knee connecting with his face.

...Shock...

That was the most immediate reaction he had felt. The speed and power behind that blow was far greater then anything he'd faced before. He knew his jaw had been dislocated. Who was this man?

The blow had sent him flying backwards, but by the time he had thought all of what just happened, the guy that was now above him brought his knees up and kicked down onto his face.

The action sent Sergei hard into the ground and the other man soaring. He did a back-flip and landed roughly on his feet, using a single hand to brace himself. The crowd was silent for a few moments, trying to comprehend was had just happened.

Then they started cheering. The first one to start was the mercenary from before, which got more people into cheering for the newcomer. They all started stomping and clapping in beat, like fans would at a basketball game. In fact, it sounded very familiar.

DUM-DUM-CLAP! DUM-DUM-CLAP! DUM-DUM-CLAP! DUM-DUM-CLAP!

And that rhythm continued repeatedly. Adam couldn't stop the shark grin that spread over his face. Sergei finally got his bearings back and got to his feet. With no sign of discomfort, he popped his jaw back into place, his eyes lighting with fire.

He rushed at the new guy, roaring, and was surprised the guy rushed at him as well. They met in the middle, the larger man trying to throw a front kick at him, but Adam's eyes saw every move with ease. Adam slid underneath and came up quickly. Using that opening, he jumped up and landed a kick to the side of Sergei's face.

The force knocked him sideways, his head turning right into a left hook from Adam. The guy had a jaw on him, Adam had to give him that, but they both knew the blow rocked him. Sergei swung wildly at him, but Adam dodged as he saw every move.

Adam ducked and weaved underneath and to the side of Sergei's punches, those boxing lessons he took coming into play. The king would leave himself open in some way after each two or three-punch combo and the challenger was capitalizing on them all.

This continued for about three minutes. Sergei would try to mix it up with some more kicks and take-down attempts, but it was like Adam could read his every move.

Adam weaved and maneuvered between four more punches before unloading several body shots that sounded like the beating of drums. He ducked underneath a hook and sent one of his own straight into the temple of Sergei, but that seemed to only make him angrier.

He retaliated with a backhand, but Adam surprised everyone by catching it with his right hand. No one had expected that. Sergei's punches were proven to easily smash solid rock. In that moment of shock, Sergei asked a question that was on everyone's minds.

"What are you?"

Adam didn't smile. The time for smiling was over. Instead, he narrowed his eyes. "I'm what you should've been."

That caused Sergei's eyes to widen with realization. The people who easily heard it didn't know what it meant, but for Sergei, it meant death.

"I'm the Solution," Adam stated, and started sending blow after blow into the man's exposed ribs, each one sounding as if they were breaking bones.

After about ten punches, Adam twisted the arm behind Sergei's back, causing the man to wince in pain. He would not yell. Spetznas training taught him better. Adam kicked him behind the knee, forcing him down.

Holding the man's head, Adam threw another knee to the back of the skull which made Sergei's vision almost go black. Not giving him any rest, Adam dropped an elbow on the man's throat, then he sent another knee into the back of the head.

He let go and stepped back, letting Sergei fall forward. With some groaning, he rolled over onto his back.

"Tell...Ansem...I'm sorry," the Russian spouted out. "The power corrupted me. Don't let him down like I did," Sergei groaned.

Adam stared unemotionally at him. "Haven't you noticed? He's been here the whole time."

Sergei looked up and saw the barely transparent ghost looking down on him. The two seemed to stare at each other for an eternity before giving each other an understanding nod.

"Then before you take my throne, let me die like a warrior," Sergei said. He got to his feet slowly and began straining his body by tightening his muscles.

With a roar, his muscles exploded from his back, giving him the appearance of Bane from those batman games. The crowd was stunned by this. They had never seen this form of Sergei's. Sergei looked to be about 400lbs now, standing at 7-8ft tall.

With a roar, Sergei challenged Adam. Seeing no other choice, Adam took out his two sword handles. With some concentration, the two dark-purple sabers appeared out of thin air, surprising the crowd yet again.

The next few minutes consisted of a ballet of acrobatic movements on Adam's part as he evaded deathblow after deathblow from the berserk Sergei. He'd make a cut here and there into the man's flesh, drawing much blood every time.

He continued this pattern for a few minutes, his God's Eyes calculating every move Sergei made and finding weaknesses and openings. A cut here and there. A thrust through massive ribs there. This seemingly one-sided battle went on til Sergei made a fatal error.

He raised his hands up together and brought them down in a double-handed slam. Adam stepped inside and the two disappeared from view in a cloud of dust as the massive attack decimated the ground underneath them.

The crowd was completely silent. No one dared to utter a single word. The tension was insane, even for Ansem. A South Western wind blew from the sea and funneled into the pit. The wind left, taking the dust with it.

And everyone could only see the standing form of Sergei and the destroyed ground underneath him. Adam was nowhere to be seen.

"Jeez, Sergei crushed him into nothing!"

"I can't believe it! That fight was unreal!"

"Damm'it, the new guy wasn't bad looking. I didn't even get a piece of him."

"Shit, now we're still stuck with this guy as king!"

"I was really hoping that new guy would win. You see the way he moved? It's inhuman."

"Just what the hell are those two guys?"

As the chattering of the crowd started to pick up, they all went silent as they saw movement from Sergei. They expected to hear some victory speech and what not, but were stunned when he fell over, revealing the source of his movement.

Adam stood over the dead Russian, both his blades having been impaled deep within the man's throat, which also ripped through his spinal cord, causing instant death. He turned his head sideways to pop his neck a couple of times and recovered his swords.

"My victory is absolute. I am your new king, and there will be many changes to the way this army has been doing things," he said as his eyes were like an eagle's as he looked over the jaw-dropped army.

"First off, this fortress will no longer be named the Kremlinok." He had everyone's absolute and undivided attention. Every man, woman, human, Ronso, and Al-bhed were completely focused on what their new king had to say.

"From now on, this fortress of mine will be called 'Outer Sanctuary.'"

**And that's the end of this chapter. Please review and tell me what you think. PLEASE! Heck, just anything will do. If you hadn't guessed it then or by now, the rhythm that the crowd was beating was 'We Will Rock You'.  
**


	8. Why are you here?

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah.  
**

**Yeah, so how'about that plot-twist. I will model this guy's personality and decision making as if I was in his shoes.**

* * *

_One day later_

Over 1,200 men and women were kneeling before me, hailing me as their new leader. Bandits, mercenaries, hunters, former crusaders, former guardians, assassins, several doctors and nurses, and two purplish/pink skinned women, all of every kind of race, were gathered in the open field of the massive fortress that was Outer Sanctuary.

Outer Sanctuary was the only place in Spira where people who were consumed by wrath towards the world could find asylum and community; atleast, that was what I planned to make it.

Soon, it will be the staging area for my plans of World Domination.

Outer Sanctuary, after spending the whole day after my victory yesterday inspecting it, was a massive rock fortress between the coastline and the mountain ranges. It could easily house up to 4,000 men and women, as well as four year's worth of provisions-everything from water and food to weapons.

An underground freshwater river ran from the mountains to many chambers underneath the fortress where it could be gathered for everyday use. It also provided plenty of water for the provisional crops within the fortress.

All in all, if ran correctly, Outer Sanctuary could be almost completely self-sustaining.

Now back to where I was at. Everyone was now under my leadership. This was perfect. I am actually a king.

By my feet lied the dead body of the former king, Sergei, who was slain by my blade while I stood on my own two feet, on my own power, with only a few small scratches to show for it. My victory was both absolute and unquestionable.

"Now hear this!" I yelled over the field, bringing everyone's attention on me. "I have killed your pathetic leader. I now rightfully claim that position of his as my own. If anyone would like to challenge me, then I accept!"

No one challenged me after several minutes of waiting.

"Then we'll get along just fine. You all may call me whatever you think is a good substitute for leader or king, but I would prefer 'Alpha', 'Wrath', or 'Furher' when speaking to me directly.

As such a title would entail, I will not tolerate any of the following acts: insubordination, treachery, lying to me, cowardly acts of killing, rape among your fellow allies, or hate towards me or one another.

From now on, you all will work as one cohesive unit, always watching each other's backs and following me, your leader. You all are of different races, but YOU WILL NOT have the luxury of discrimination in Outer Sanctuary.

I will personally deal with any offenders of these rules. You should know well that my eyes see EVERYTHING. I will know if you dare or attempt to cross me. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Fuhrer!"-Humans, Al-bhed, and Guados all yelled.

"Yes, Alpha!"-All the Ronso yelled.

Everyone raised either their weapons or hand to salute their new, stronger leader, who gazed over the crowds along the courtyard and walls of the fort with his "all-seeing eyes".

* * *

The two Demons of Desires had arrived late in the evening before. At that time, several men had lined up to challenge their king, Sergei. As the crowds formed to watch the match, the two sisters had decided to find a better place to watch the humans killing each other.

Onyx and Becera couldn't stand to be near the humans, so that was why they had watched the events from atop the large causeway that overlooked the field. They had seen everything clearly.

They saw when this new 'Alpha' entered the fortress on a behemoth, intriguing them. With his lack of clothes, they silently felt like it was a challenge if they didn't know better.

They saw him jump clear into the pit and put on a display of agility and strength that impressed them very much. They were shocked to see a human defeat that abomination Sergei so easily.

They saw him casually climb back out of the pit and went inside of the fortress, leaving the crowds and demons to ponder many questions.

Now here they were, fitting into the crowds by pledging allegiance, albeit false allegiance, to this human who had the gall to call himself Alpha. They took his claim of seeing everything as simple arrogance.

"Onyx, this man is difficult to term. Perhaps arrogant is the best description," the demon Becera whispered.

Onyx, her sister, nodded. "Yet, he does back up some of his boasts with that fight yesterday. And his new rules are a farcry from Sergei's. He is very different."

"What about Father's orders? With Sergei dead, the plan has surely changed. This man will not be as lenient as that other brute," Becera explained, concern of failing her father lacing her voice.

"We're demons of 'Desires.' It won't be too hard to manipulate a testosterone, human male," Onyx stated, ending the conversation.

Unknown to them, Adam's eyes were right on them...narrowed and sharp.

* * *

There was no one in the tower when the two Desire Demons entered. They were surprised to receive word that the new king wished to see them. Keeping their plan in mind, they had agreed to go meet with the man.

As they traveled of the spiral stairs, passing by numerous rooms that housed everything from barracks and armories to food storage and bathrooms. The Alpha's room was on the second from last floor. It took them about five minutes of walking, but they finally made it.

They were slightly disturbed that they had yet to meet a single soul in the entire tower. Normally, there were guards posted every other floor to keep the imaginary assassins away from that room of fornication.

They looked each other in the eye. Could that be the reason they were here?

When they finally approached the Alpha's door, Onyx knocked lightly.

"Come in, please," they heard the new king say.

They walked in, expecting to see the normally lavish room. They were shocked to see that the room laid bare, save for a hammock that was stretched across a corner of the room.

Standing by the window, looking out over the ocean, was Adam. He was the same, except he had a little more clothing now then before.

"I've been wanting to meet with you ever since I first saw you to speaking to each other in the crowd earlier today. I just wanted to ask a few questions," he spoke in a serious, but leveled, let's get down to business, voice.

He turned around and stepped up to them. They held their ground, still not knowing what exactly they should expect from this new king. He stared at each of them straight in their eyes, never blinking. They were more put off by this behavior.  
He was eyeing them like a large predator.

"What are you two doing here?" he finally asked. The question obviously confused them.

"Did you not send for us?" Onyx asked. This king sighed and brought out one of his sword handles and twirled it on his finger.

"I mean, why are you two in Outer Sanctuary? And you better not lie to me," he spoke the last part with dead seriousness.

Both of the demons were starting to worry that their cover was blown, but they still kept their facade. Unfortunately, there was something they never could've fathomed about the man before them.

When they answered "We're sisters, here because we hate the world that judges us for our appearance. We find asylum and solitary here," he materialized his wrath into the blade they had seen before, but this one was serrated.

The sudden appearance of the sword in her face made the younger sister, Onyx, step back in surprise and...dare she say...fear?

"Let me tell you two girls something," he started. "The only reason I haven't killed you both is because what you two are and what you're hiding are far more interesting then cleaning your bloodstains from this floor.

You see, along with being able to form swords, I have another skill. It's called the "Eyes of God." I can see everything: scent, wind, tiny insects, small muscle twitches, heat, and ghosts. The list goes on. But the really neat trick is that when I stare into a person's eyes, I can see their soul."

Both of the sisters gasped. He knew their intentions from the beginning!

"So you see, I do SEE everything," Adam stated. "My desire to cut you both down for blatantly lying to my face is outweighed only by my greater desire for knowledge. Be that as it may, I have only existed in this world for a week. There is much I have yet to discover."

The two girls were startled by this discovery. How could he have only existed for a week?

"So why don't you girls tell me who you are and what you are doing in my fortress?"

Reluctantly, but having no choice, Onyx and Becera filled him in on their names, their species, and a little bit about their father. They also told him about the Yevon order, Elijah, and the Paladins. After about twenty minutes of this, he finally gave the signal to stop.

What surprised them was that he had been very observant and caught onto their every word and expressions as they said them. He knew they weren't lying. How could anyone lie about something that big.

When he had their silence, he spoke finally.

"First thing I would like to say is that you ladies disgust me in many ways. I could care less about the 'love' you have for each other or for your father, yet, I admire it as well. I merely view your atrocious acts as a natural need for survival, using the tools and skills that you were born with to their maximum potential."

Onyx and Becera exchanged glances, unsure of where he was going with this.

"I was well decided with cutting you both down, but when you told me of these 'Paladins and this 'Elijah', along with this 'Order of Yevon' nonsense, I have chosen instead to spare your lives.

You see, if there is one thing I hate more then liars, it's people like these Paladins and Elijah. I'm get so INFURIATED by pompous, self-righteous, dickheads who look down upon and persecute beings simply because of their origins in the name of something as laughable as 'Yevon.'"

The two demons were stunned by this complete 180 turnaround from the 'Alpha.' Then he said something that shocked them both.

"I want to speak to your father. I will offer aid in hunting down these Paladins for you in return for amnesty for my men from your tricks and ill intents."

The sisters looked dumbstruck at the demand. This guy was really demanding to see their father? Either he was really brave, really stupid, or incredibly insane!

"I will only send one of you back to deliver my message. To prove the strength of my word, I will travel by foot to Kilika with one of you as my guide. We will be by ourselves, so there will be no threat of ambush."

He paused to think abit more about his next statements. "She will not be a hostage or a bargaining chip. I do not wish it, but I will not hesitate to cut down anyone who tries to inflict harm upon me . Am I crystal clear?"

Startled and somewhat frightened by the aura this man was exuding, the older sister, Becera, nodded. But Onyx was hesitant.

"Sister...please don't go," she whispered.

"I must," Becera replied. "I promise you will be okay. If this man were to harm you, he would receive the full wrath of our family," she assured.

"But I'm frightened of this man," the younger one admitted. Her eyes were filled with trepidation and worry. The thought of possibly being slain by this man and no one able to help her filled her mind.

Adam had quietly listened and was almost insulted by this. "When I give my word, I keep it, Onyx."

The two weren't aware that he could hear their whispers.

"There is no more reason to fret. Your concerns are noted, but unnecessary. While you'll be under my constant watch, that means my constant protection as well. Now I advise that your sister makes haste."

Adam noted the love they shared as they removed their false covers from their identities and engaged in a very heated kiss. He let them have their moment since they still didn't completely trust his word, but he had to draw the line when their hands started to get curious of the other's body. Jesus, he was only 19, so this stuff was only in his fantasies.

"As I said, no harm will come to her if you follow my instructions. You will...have a chance to do 'that' at another time," he said, shifting uncomfortably.

They were surprised to see the hard, young-looking man look away uncomfortably, focusing on anything but them. His behavior surely raised some questions but he caught their puzzled stares and returned them with a glare.

"Well, have you left and returned already? If not, then what are you still doing here?" he asked.

She sent him an annoyed look and told her sister "I will see you again, sister. Do not worry. I will return with Father." With that, the older one left in a jog, leaving Onyx alone with Adam.

She fidgeted nervously under his gaze, which he broke to go back to looking out the window at the ocean. Sure, her kind has both speed, strength, and magical abilities that far surpassed the average human or soldier, but this guy couldn't be human.

She saw him almost effortlessly win the fight against the former king, who was a monster of a man in his own right. This new king could see and counter his every move.

Adam saw her staring off into space and knew she was thinking. "You have a question, dear? Go ahead and ask it."

She jerked out of her daze, surprised because she still wasn't use to his sharp perception. Hesitating, she thought about how to ask her question without being offensive.

"Alpha...just what are you?"

He raised a brow at that. "Come again?"

The young woman gritted her teeth and clenched her fists as she built up her nerve again. This time, anger and shame laced her words like a black veil as she spoke them.

"Just what the hell are you? You're human, yet you're not. You have managed to frighten both me and my sister to death with nothing but a few words and a stare. Even now, my heart is pounding and my body is trembling from fear! You've managed to turn us demons, us murderous, deceptive, and merciless demons, into frighten cowards! I shouldn't be afraid since you're a human, but you're not! Just...what are you?"

His eyes were slightly widen from the outburst of the girl. The demon girl clasped her hands over her mouth in disbelief of her rude outburst. The panick started setting in and she fell to her knees.

She was going to die. She knew it. There was no way she was going to get off from her blatant insult.

When Adam stepped to her, she closed her eyes to await her end. However, the sound of laughter met her ears. She opened her eyes and stared in rage as she thought this man was mocking her, laughing at her weakness.

However, Adam was laughing and bent down to his knees.

"My, oh my,.. no one's talked to me like that in a while. It brings back some old memories, though."

He lifted her to her feet and patted her shoulder. "That took some courage, girl. And even though you were frightened, you didn't hold anything back, did you?"

She stared wordlessly at him.

Though afraid, you still approached me about a serious subject. I highly respect that. You shouldn't be ashamed of fear, girl. Without fear, one would have no reason to push themselves further in life. If all of your sisters are like you, then I believe we'll be friends soon enough."

"I don't understand," she said, disbelievingly.

"You don't have to," he answered back.

**And that's the end of this one. TUC, you up next man. Someonethatexist, I hope that wasn't too long of a wait.**


	9. Dinner and a Fight

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah.  
**

**Yeah, so how'about that plot-twist. I will model this guy's personality and decision making as if I was in his shoes.**

* * *

Just as I had hoped, Becera returned with news from her father. However, her first impression receive some negative points when she handed me the skull that was titled 'Earth.' I devised a special response for that, but I decided to wait to give it to Omnem personally.

However, while she had been gone, I hadn't just sat idle. In fact, I've been quite the busy bee despite just being here. Sure, Sergei had made a smart move with enveloping technology with his fortress, but the machina we had were mostly out of date. The Al-bhed could easily fix them and have nothing else to do for the day.

So, to appease their love for technology, I had begun drawing up plans for something the likes of which Spira has never witnessed. It would take much devotion and time to complete, as well as much space. That was why I had one of the massive underground chambers barricaded and cut off from the rest of the fortress in secret. If there has been one important lesson that I knew to keep above all else when you run a fortress filled with criminals, it was that you could trust nobody but yourself and your weapon.

Despite the prospect of being cut off from the outside for most of the time, the Al-bhed that I handpicked personally were all too happy to get to work on something new. Sergei was a tremendous fool to waste such talents on repairing antique cannons. Among these men were high-level chemists, hydrolic technicians, metal forgers, and metal architects.

From just the majors these men and women possessed, one who had some sense would know a few things.

1. Whatever I had planned was very large, as the cavern I isolated was four hundred yards long by three hundred yards wide, and two hundred yards tall.

2. It would have firepower.

3. It would be mobile.

4. Finally, it would be armored.

I looked over each Al-bhed that I had on the candidate list. Look them over spiritually as well. There were a few that I noticed that were almost too willing. Any man worth his weight would be apprehensive about an undertaking of something this big and secret. To prove my point of zero tolerance for possible treachery, I beheaded them in front of everyone that was present.

Six Al-bhed lied dead at my feet, my sword emanating pure wrath. Traitors made me so angry, though they probably weren't.

I could smell the scent of betrayal like it was a rotting corpse. Deceit. Treachery. Lying. It all made me so FURIOUS. As a warning, I personally strung up all of the corpses from the ceiling over the work space as a perfectly clear sign. It gave a clear signal that I wasn't to be underestimated.

I don't believe in arrogance, just confidence. Afterall, arrogance is a building block of self-destruction.

After isolating the group completely by planting heavy blast doors at the entrances, I began implementing operations to have all scrap metal and iron ore smelted down for building materials. This process proved very quickly to be very proficient. With building materials on the way, and complete isolation to focus on their new challenge, over 200 Al-bhed began work.

I stayed for the next hour to supervise but decided that they would not need to be watched over. A foolish notion I humored myself with. Though six Al-bhed I killed...I didn't like them one bit. Infact, in all honesty, I didn't kill them because of my eyes' perception of their souls. No..I killed them because my instincts told me to. Nobody here has any idea what all I went through in that other dream state. I developed my instincts to a superhuman level from constantly being hunted or shot at by Semeru and Crowe. I'm not one to ever value ability over instinct.

After I had gotten back, I took a nice cold bath and prepared myself for the dinner with this Demon of Pride, as Omnem was called. To be honest I hated dinner parties, especially where I had to dress up formerly. But you know what one of my mottos always was?

To hell with normalcy.

I got on some blue trousers that were a little big for me, but I also found a black belt that could hold them onto my waist. For a shirt, I found a white button up that I tucked in and rolled the sleeves up to my elbows. I latched my two sword hilts to my belt and stepped out of the room. As I traveled down the stairs of the tower, that was where I had met up with Becera and Onyx again. The two were still very happy to see each other alright.

They looked me over and didn't really have anything positive to say.

"You are going to dress like that to meet our father?" Becera asked.

"You really are an animal," Onyx mocked.

I glared at them. "Go shove your sense of formality up your own purple asses. I couldn't care less about a person's clothing. It's who's in the clothes that you should ever worry about."

The two girls 'hmmph' and turned their heads. I grumbled to myself, that wrath inside of me itching to be released for just a few moments. That's all it would take.

"Let's just get going, shall we?" I started.

As we made our way near the gate, it opened for our departure. I looked at the gate keepers and told them in a stern voice. "I'm going to meet with a possible allie for our endeavor. I have already issued a curfew to everyone within the fort. If you see anyone sneaking about, kill them."

Timoth, the gatekeeper that I met on my first day, nodded in approval. Charlie, my behemoth, stomped up to us, thinking I was about to go hunting again. "You see anybody out tonight besides the guards, you either kill them or save them for me."

Though he couldn't understand my words, my tone told him I meant business. I gave him the eye that said to kill anything hostile. He growled and went about his own patrolling across the fields. It's amazing how smart those creatures actually were.

When I brought my focus back onto the gate, the girls were curious about all of the security. "I have a rule to never trust any man. I simply don't trust some of my new soldiers as of yet." And that was true. I also made sure to memorize the faces and write down the names of all of the guards on watch. If anyone was out of line or an unknown, I would know it.

* * *

When we arrived at Kilika, I was surprised by the devastation that had been caused, mainly because I couldn't recognize it at all. Along the main island, there were many workers being slave driven to construct what appeared to be fortified walls. I was met with mainly arrogant or hostile looks from demons who looked similar to my guides, however whenever I showed them that I wasn't a slave and gave them the meanest glare I could, they either challenged my stare or went back to working the slaves.

The further I traveled, the more I became angered. Not by the fact that these people were being forced to be slaves, but by the fact that they all looked so defeated. Such weakness does not deserve the blessing of freedom. Onyx and Becera somewhat agreed with my thoughts about the weak and the strong.

As we marched on, we eventually entered some kind of cave system. This was undoubtably where the Demons of Desires' attack originated from. Unless they had posted sentries here, then the people of Kilika never stood a snowball's chance in Hell.

The further in we got, the nicer it got. However, the smell of blood filled my nose. The halls reaked of it. I wouldn't exactly call it a bad thing. Eventually, we reached a large set of doors. The two sisters knocked on the doors and preceded me in.

"Your reputation precedes you, Adam," came a deep voice. "I have been waiting for another one of Ansem's Chosen to arrive and kill that insufferable bastard, Sergei. Miu semeth gorgreth Superbia Omnem. Translated into your language, it means my name is Superbia Omnem. I am so pleased to meet you."

I looked at the source of the voice and was somewhat surprised to see a middle-age human sitting at the head of the table. However, anybody who had a decent set of instincts could tell that there was something much more to him. I didn't need God's Eyes to see that this man was pure evil, if I went by the most commonly accepted definition of the word.

"Please, please...sit. What are your tastes? Carnivorous? Herbivorous? Omnivorous? Energy inclined? Humans are so indecidous," Omnem asked.

I glanced around the room in a discreet manner as I made my way to what I guessed was my seat. There were ten of his daughters outlining the room, probably acting as some sort of guard or intimidation method. "The pleasure is mine," I finally replied. "I received your message."

I held up the human skull. "While I'm not angered by it, here's what I personally think of it." With little effort, my strength allowed me to crush the skull to many fragments by simply squeezing it. "I understand your warning well, but I could care less about Earth now that I'm here."

"I'm surprised I even have a reputation. Killing Sergei was more of a test to see what my body was capable of since I've only existed in this world for a little over a week."

I thought over my choices but was quick with it. "I believe I'm more of an omnivore. Though I love meat, one has to eat his vegetables to stay healthy," I joked. I wasn't sure if he would understand the reference to how mothers always try to make their kids eat that 'nasty green stuff', but the beast in disguise chuckled none the less.

"I see. Very well, we have prepared each type of dinner just to be certain. Afterall, there's is so little that I know about you," he responded. As if on cue, a large platter was set before them on the table. Adam could see the man lick his lips in anticipation, yet Omnem's eyes shifted the gaze from the platter to him frequently.

One of the demon sisters pulled the drapery off of the meal, causing my eyes to slightly widen. Their meal was a live woman. Gagged and tied up, she looked around fearfully. She looked scared and confused when she noticed the many large knives and forks set out before the two mysterious men.

"A young priestess, devoted to following the will of Yevon. She was among several others who we'd captured a little while ago. I figure she would make a fine meal," Omnem explained.

He grinned almost maniacally at me as I got to my feet and stepped near the girl. She tried to worm crawl away, but she ended up tripping and falling off the side of the table and onto the floor. I stood over her, my eyes narrowed in thought. Omnem just sat back and watched, eager to see how I would react. I reached down and picked her up with one arm and set her back on the table. I ripped out her gag.

She tried to use that freedom to scream for help, but my hand shot over her mouth like a viper.

"Listen here, woman. If there is one thing I really hate, it's women who feel like they always have to scream when they're in danger. Let me just go ahead and tell you that even if you were to scream for days in here, no one would come to rescue you."

Her eyes were wide and tearing up from fear. Crying. That was something else I hated. "Tears will not bring you salvation either, so don't waste the fluids."

When she seemed to have calmed down, I removed my hand. "What kind of human are you? You plan on eating me?"

My hand shot out and gripped her by her throat. "Do not...ever...compare me to _them_," I said angrily.

"Then are you demons?" she asked with much strain as my grip was close to crushing her windpipe.

I shrugged my shoulders. "He's actually the demon over there," I gestured to Omnem. Said man grinned and waved as the woman sent him a glare. "I'm...just complicated. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to ask one question."

"And what is that?" she responded, some curiosity replacing her fear.

"What's your name?" I asked straight up.

"Ludmilla Alishka, one of the priestess that were going to the Temple of Kilika. Why do you want to know?"

I glared at her as she was leaning on the table. "You just made a fatal error, Ludmilla."

With a quick thrust, I stabbed my straighten-out hand into her chest till my fingers exited her back. She looked startled but couldn't say anything. "I always remember the faces and names of those that I kill, because I guarantee that they will never forget mine."

Inside, I did hate doing what I did. She was a rather pretty woman with a great figure. It's just that...I hate it when women expect things from me automatically. This woman had expected me to keep conversating and possibly letting her go. Also, the way she was subtly reaching for one of the many knives to cut her bindings was proof that she had planned to surprise me. Well, I just love being unpredictable.

As she fell backwards, she futiley tried to cling onto my arms for support, but her strength faded from her quickly. I stared at her corpse for a moment before flipping her over onto her stomach. As I reached for a particular knife, it put me in a very awkward position, one that would look perverted to anybody watching it.

However, after I got the knife, I showed my true purpose. "Alright, Omnem, I prefer the tenderloins, but I'll let you decide first."

Omnem, who had been slightly surprised by my quick and brutal execution, chuckled when he got his senses back. "My, you surely know how to entertain. I believe you just switched our roles here, since you are my guest. However, if you insist, I would very much like to start with her small intestines."

I nodded and went to work gutting her. With having had much experience field dressing deer whenever I hunted back on earth, this wasn't any different. The familiarity of this skill showed as I expertly sliced her to pieces like a Thanksgiving turkey. Sense my sleeves were rolled up, I didn't get any stains on my shirt as I handed Omnem his plate of intestines, which was a good thing, cuz I hated washing clothes.

He received it gratefully and watched as I began cutting slices of back muscles from the woman. I didn't stop there though. I also trimmed any parsel of fat from the meat, because I couldn't tolerate the rubbery feel of chewing fat. After I finished, I did what I thought any gentlemen would do and offered to prepare a plate for any of the others, but the demon sisters denied.

I took my plate and then my seat at the other end of the table.

"Tell me about where you come from, Adam. Who you are? Why did you take Ansem's offer. He offers many...but few accept or are ready for that. What makes you different from other humans?" Omnem began.

I took my time to finish chewing the tenderloin in my mouth, savoring the taste. I'd always wondered what Hannibal Lecter felt like, and after trying this back meat, I can't say I blamed the guy.

"First off, I will be honest and say that I won't tell you everything about me. There are some things, like with all people, that must remain in the past. If we are to dwell on it, then we would miss the present and future. I'm sure there are some things that you would love to never think of again."

The slight twinge in Omnem's eye told me that was a definitive yes. "Of course. You speak with greater wisdom then Sergei did. I think I can start to understand why Ansem chose you, but that is still not enough to sate my curiosity. Please answer the questions to the extent you feel okay with."

I nodded my appreciation as I swallowed another piece of tenderloin. "To put it simply, I've had just about the kind of life you'd expect from someone like me. Abusive mother, living in poverty, grief-stricken, and alone and angry at the world. Cliche, is it not? I'm like the character in some grand, sophisticated story titled 'Life', written by 'Asshole.'"

Omnem, and even many of the sisters present, chuckled at my strange sense of humor. It was certainly unique and inventive.

"As for why I accepted? It's simple to me, but it's complicated to explain. The simplest way of putting it is that I wanted to fulfill my dream."

My host raised a curious brow. "What dream was that?"

I set my fork and knife aside and rested my chin on my intertwined fingers. "Let me tell you a story, Omnem. There was once a thief who lived in the forest. He spent many years raiding and murdering travelers. The local authority tried everything they could think of to catch or kill him. After many years of constant failures, they finally caught him."

Omnem appeared very interested in this story of mine. "Oh? How did they catch him?"

"Simple: They burned down the forest. And it wasn't until much later that they discovered that, throughout all of the years of murdering, the thief never took anything of value. He left all of his victims' livestock, money, jewels, etc."

"Then what was the point of stealing and murdering them?" he asked. The sisters didn't show it as much as their father did, but they were interested in the same thing. Why?

"What was the point? You see, there are two types of criminals: There's the type that does it for fame, or infamy, or money, like Sergei. Then there are those like me...who just want to see the world burn."

Realization dawned on everyone in the room. This guy, Adam, had no motive for his decisions. It was as if-

"In other words...I'm just a natural born killer," I said, unknowingly having finished everyone's thoughts. Omnem was slightly in disbelief, mainly because he considered himself a genius when it came to the human mind. However, this Adam was much more intelligent then he first anticipated. That would make him either a great ally, or a horrible enemy.

"And that is why I spared your daughters' lives. Take it however which way you want it, but with your help, my dreams will come to fruition."

"You really have ambitions...much better than that idiot who you slew earlier today," Omnem stated. "Tell me.. How do you know I haven't already trapped you and are simply playing with you before killing you?"

I narrowed my eyes, which slowly closed. "If you were planning on killing me, then you would've done it before I came here." I gazed over at the surrounding daughters. "Afterall, now that I'm here, if you were to try to kill me, then I could guarantee that none of these women would be living after you've felled me."

They all narrowed their eyes, Omnem included, at what I was saying. His grip on the table's edge was on the verge of breaking it. I confidently looked him right in the eyes. "After what Onyx and Becera told me, I'd imagine that you're in short supply of children at the moment. Putting their lives at risk would do you more harm then good, Omnem."

_third person_

The sisters, who were starting to find Adam very interesting, now wanted nothing more then to tear his head off for mentioning such a sore and recent catastrophe. Omnem managed to reel his temper in for the time being, not wanting to let this person get the best of him. On the contrary, he became more entralled with this human.

"Now, since I have answered your questions, let me ask some of my own," Adam said. Omnem nodded and gestured for him to continue. "Very well, my first would be to ask how do you know of Ansem?"

Omnem finished chewing the rest of the food in his mouth and set his knives aside. "A very understandable question. As it turns out, me and Ansem have known each other for a few hundred years. A few hundred years after I had materialized into a human from the pride of a dying man, Ansem had done the same, except instead of turning into a human to disguise himself, he opted to keep his original form and stay hidden in the shadows. It wasn't until about fifty years ago that I suppose he learned of his ability to inseminate dark powers into beings of a specific caliber."

Adam mentally swore to himself that he'd ask more about this from Ansem, if just for curiosity. If the spirit didn't want to answer it, then it'd be no skin off his bones.

"A very interesting story. Tell me, would you not as well have the power to insert powers into a being?"

"A very good question, I might say. However, no, I do not. While manifesting one's emotions, usually the most dominant one, into actual powers was Ansem's special skill, mine lies solely in my zeal-the ability to impregnate women to give birth to my daughters in mere minutes."

Adam chuckled. "Hmhmhm, and they say one shouldn't mix work with pleasure."

Several of the daughters, having cooled off from the earlier comments, gave several laughs. Omnem did surpress his own laughter either. He had to admit, this human was certainly random, yet he could put together cleverly worded sentences to give them both a sense of seriousness and humor.

"You are very observant in more then just fighting, it appears. You think outside of the box, trying to be unpredictable in everything you do or say. I consider myself very well versed with how the human brain operates, and to meet someone like you is a breath of fresh air as I had long ago grown bored of the subject."

The demon stood up from his chair, a grin on his face. "You entertain me, Adam. So to show my appreciation, I will attempt to understand you further." He pulled from the back of the chair a massive greatsword. "For you see, you never truely understand someone until you fight them. Would you do me the honor?"

Adam swallowed the last of his tenderloins and wiped his mouth on his forearm. "Very well, Omnem. For being entirely different in origin, it seems we have near identical ideologies."

He took out one of his sword hilts and released the hate that constantly flowed within him, materializing his characteristic Bradley saber, which is what he now dubbed it. Those who had yet to see his power were surprised a little, having been filled in on some of his more obvious abilities from Becera and the father.

"An interesting choice of weapon. Wrath can have any form, yet you still choose a sword? Is there a certain reason?" Omnem asked.

"I've always been more of a 'up close and personal' kind of fighter. I merely tolerated distance weapons, such as guns, for their strategical and destructive potential," he stated in a calm and cool manner.

The two had a stare down that seemed to last several minutes to the ten daughters who were making sure to give them plenty of space. Despite his potential, they still didn't think Adam would last long against their father.

A small water droplet, having traveled from the ground above them as it began raining outside, fell between them from the roof. In that instant, Omnem's eyes saw it and focused on it for the most minute moment, but Adam saw the change of attention and shot forward. His legs would have seemed like blurs to any normal human as they carried him across the entire table in almost no time.

Surprise was evident on all of their faces at his speed. Having been caught off-guard, Omnem brought his blade up to defend against a swipe meant to cleave his head off. He was astounded yet again by the strength his opponent appeared to have as their locked blades were grinding from the friction of being pressed together. Omnem recovered himself quickly and put more force behind his blade, but instead of throwing his opponent back, he felt no resistance as Adam dematerialized his sword, only to rematerialize it inside of his guard.

For the first time in his entire life, Omnem was harmed by a human, Father Elijah excluded. All of his daughters gaped as a line of blood flew from their father's chest. The man in question jumped back, shock evident on his face. However, Adam wouldn't let him have any respite.

He went forward again and tried to thrust his sword through the demon's head, but his blade was deflected. He brought his blade back and thrusted repeatedly, trying to impale Omnem, but the demon managed to either side-step or deflect the quick, merciless blows.

'He's very fast,' Omnem thought. 'His skill is very precise and he has absolute control of his sword's movements. He has already proven to be a tougher opponenet then Sergei could have ever hoped to be.'

He continued observing Adam, who was actually doing the same thing, and stuck to just deflecting attacks until he had a good idea of what this human was capable of. Adam was observing the man's each move as well. He noticed that Omnem would occasionally attempt one or two attacks but stuck to just defending himself.

'He's watching me; calculating me,' Adam surmised. 'He won't attack unless he thinks he has a chance, and he's not taking any risks until he has a feel for my speed. Looks like I'll have to constantly push the pace on him.'

He cotinued his flurry of swipes and thrusts from all angles, constantly keeping Omnem on his toes. Their fight soon escalated into the next room when Adam made his weapon vanish when the two were in a sword lock, causing Omnem to be thrown off balance. Adam used that opening to land a spinning-back kick into Omnem's stomach. The force behind it was enough to launch the demon across the room and through the wall into the next room where several more daughters were at.

They were startled to see their father being knocked through a wall and prepared to decapitate the person responsible for it. Their eyes widen with rage when they fell on Adam as he jumped through the hole, soon followed by the first ten spectators.

The ones who had no idea what was going on stood protectively between him and their father. "Don't take another step!" one of them yelled, only to have her mouth closed by a hand. Said hand belonged to Adam as he used his strength to toss her back about forty yards to the other side of their new battlefield.

"Don't interfere with our fight. Your father wanted this."

"You're wrong there, Adam," Omnem spoke as he got up, his grin still in place. "We both wanted this!

He charged a fire spell in his hand and shot out five separate spells, each from his fingers. Adam's eye caught the movement and he started cutting through the spells like butter, but Omnem had launched two more sets of spells. Adam tried to cut them all down, but even though his eye see all that happened, his body was having trouble.

"Just as I thought. Your 'Eyes of God' may be able to see everything in the visible spectrum, but your body can't react in time if the attacks are too fast and numerous. A fatal, but mendable, drawback."

"Looks like you've still got some tricks up your sleeves. Well two can play at that game!" He pulled out his other sword hilt and materialized his second weapon. Crossing them in an X-shaped guard, he prepared himself as the man ran at him with his greatsword held in one hand and a green colored spell in the other.

So far, the two had been giving a show of swordsmanship that stunned their audience. While their father held the advantage of strength and experience, this 'Adam' showed to be more proficient in skill and speed.

As their blades met with a ear-shattering clang, Omnem launched the charged spell at the wall behind Adam. There was an explosion and, much to Adam's surprise and slight horror, purposefully directed debree coming right at him. He struggled to hold back the demon's massive sword while he tried to deflect all of the rock debree that came at him like bullets.

Swinging his sword wildly to deflect the projectiles, he couldn't get them all and a few tore into his legs and abdomen like bullets. He grimaced from the pain and that was enough of a distraction for Omnem to overpower his guard and throw an uppercut to his torsoe. The power behind the punch was incredible as Adam went soaring to the ceiling all too fast for his taste.

Somehow, he managed to bring his feet up to brace him for the impact. He body caused a crater in the ceiling. Instead of falling down, Adam had stabbed his two swords into the ceiling to hold him in place. Now upside down, he looked down at Omnem who had an amused glint in his eye. Adam didn't dare to show weakness, but that punch was really something else. He felt his entire stomach area numb from the blow.

"That was quite a recovery," Omnem said.

"That was quite a punch," he replied.

He launched himself down on the demon man and brought all of that gathered momentum down in a double swing. Omnem had met his strength with his own. A explosion of pure energy blew everything around them away.

*CHINK*

The sound of metal cracking caused both men's eyes to widen, knowing that someone's weapon just broke. Unfortunately, it was one of Adam's swords. Though his wrath was still plentiful, the impact was too great a strain on the blade, something he had not expected. Not wanting to be at the disadvantage any longer, he did a daring maneuver.

He stabbed the hilt with the shattered blade into Omnem's forearm, illiciting a curse from the demon. With his ultimate eyes guiding his hand, he managed to catch the other half of his broken sword and stabbed it into Omnem's neck, elliciting more curses from the man. Black blood flowed freely the man's body where he was wounded, causing all of his daughters to nearly interfere with the fight a second time.

Seeing his opportunity, Adam rushed forward with another flurry of deadly sword swipes and jousts. Omnem deflected all that he could while trying to get that damn sword fragment out of his neck, but he was trying to do that with the arm that had been stabbed, which obviously put much strain on him. More and more cuts and gashes started appearing on Omnem's body as Adam wouldn't relent for even a breather.

With a powerful downward swing, he created a deep cut from the top of Omnem's shoulder to his waist, yet the demon wasn't done yet. He swung upward in a backhanded motion, but Adam halted the sword's movement with his own. He countered with a powerful straight right into Omnem's nose. His sharp eyesight saw for a moment the demon's face cave in before returning to normal.

Not wanting to underestimate his opponent, Adam relentlessly pounded his fist into Omnem's face, the sounds of bone breaking sickening the demons watching. Surprisingly, Omnem came back with a punch of his own. Adam brought his sword up to block it, but found that his sword broke from the sheer force behind the punch and the fist connect with his face.

He felt his jaw delocate from the blow as he was sent flying backwards and through the wall into another room. Stumbling to his feet, Adam winced in pain as he popped his jaw back into place. The sound of heavy footsteps brought his attention to the irate demon in front of him. For some strange reason, Omnem seemed more pissed then usual. Perhaps his special ability was finally starting to have effect?

Omnem was aware that something was off about himself as well. It was small at first, but he soon found himself getting angrier the more cuts he received. 'Does his swords have some hidden ability? They must be enraging me. But what would be the purpose of that? Unless...of course. To make me angrier would be to make me dumber. The angrier I become, the more mistakes I would make. Then he'd just pick me apart during each opening. So that's what was happening to me earlier.'

As he thought this, he was in a fight exchange with Adam. The man was unarmed and forced to evade the most as he wouldn't even consider trying to take a hit from Omnem's large sword. That would have spelled disaster for him. However, when he saw the hilt still imbedded into the man's forearm, he got an idea.

"What's say you put that big sword down and let's do this the old fashion way." He balled his fists up, hoping to convince the demon to comply. Omnem assumed he was trying to goad him into fight him hand-to-hand to avoid any deathblows.

"I see what you're trying to do, boy, but I've hundreds of years of experience in fighting while I can sense that you are very young. But I'll let you amuse me some more." Omnem handed his sword to one of his daughters and took off his armor which was dented and beaten very badly. Both men now stood before one another, bloody and beaten, but definately not tired.

Adam started it off with a trio of really quick jabs, being sure to drive through instead of just withdrawing the punch as soon as it landed-a lesson he learned while boxing. The result was Omnem's head being rocked by punches that were as quick as jabs but as strong as hooks. His showed his displeasure by returning his own combo.

Adam was able to successfully weaved around them, but didn't want to get himself in another bind, like with those fire spells. He would get out if he felt overwhelmed. After avoiding an uppercut, he sent a hard kick to Omnem's ribs, causing the man to gasp in pain as he went flying into the wall and into the room from before.

Adam jumped through the hole only to collide with Omnem in mid-air. The demon managed to have the greater momentum at the moment, so he ended up in the dominant position as they fell. They rolled around on the ground and threw quick and powerful punches into the other body whenever they could. Omnem finally got his feet up when he was underneath and pushed off.

The kick sent Adam sailing backwards and through another wall, another room, and then through another wall. Omnem was already en route when he got back to his feet, although very sorely. The stronger man tried to spear Adam, but Adam fell on his back, brought his feet up, and caught the demon. Using the momentum, he sent Omnem overhead and into the wall.

Thankfully not through it though, because on the other side of that wall were the catacombs, the demon daughters thought. Their father would've found himself freefalling for about a couple hundred feet.

Adam recovered and peeled Omnem off the wall and slammed him repeatedly into it, increasing their risk of falling through. After being slammed into the wall for the fifth time, Omnem swung Adam around and into the wall. But the wall finally gave way. Omnem tried to let go, but Adam held onto his arms tight and he found himself falling several hundred feet.

Throughout the catacombs, there was usually much traffic. The fight, having lasted for fifteen minutes so far, had captured the attention of several desire demons. The ones that weren't aware of the situation were quick to react, but were stopped by their more aware sisters and filled in on what was happening.

A couple of the desire demons were transporting some of the cattle to the lower levels but had come into the cavernous room just in time to see their father and another man hit the ground. There was a thunderous crash as the two men were cratered into the ground. The two laid there motionless for several minutes. By that time, about half of the sisters were there on the scene.

As they arrived, Adam and their father were just pulling themselves out of their own imprints. Much to everyone's dismay, Omnem got in a cheap shot and slugged a woozy Adam in the stomach. Said man retaliated by bringing his foot up and kicking Omnem away as the demon tried to lunge at him.

"How in the hell are they still fighting?" Onyx asked.

"I wouldn't expect anything less from father, but this human has managed to fight with him evenly. What the hell is he made of?" Elesa asked in the end.

By now, both men were staggering, their wounds now showing themselves more then ever. None of the sisters could believe someone could do this much damage and still be standing. The woman with wings, Merci, suddenly broke out over the crowd.

"Come on, Omnem, get your ass up! You gonna let a human beat you?" she taunted, alerting many of the prisoners to who the other guy probably was.

"Hey!" both Adam and Omnem yelled in unison.

"Don't you mock me!" they both said, then went back to brawling. Adam was trying to stick to using his speed more often while Omnem was hell-bent on trying to break any body part he could land a blow on.

Soon, all of the demons were cheering their father on when they were filled in as well. As for the nearby humans who were unaware of Adam's true idenity, they started cheering him on.

Oh, the irony that would befall them later will be priceless.

Jab. Jab. POP! Jab. Jab. POP! Adam was sending a double jab then hard straight combo repeatedly, pounding Omnem's jaw. Said demon would recover after each combination and send a few of his own. Though since he was favoring his strength now more then speed, he would only land one out of every three or four. The damage to their bodies were extensive and would probably take a week of physical therapy, but the cheering fans kept them going.

Suddenly, both Adam and Omnem got a warm, funny feeling. They both started giving dopie grins even after getting hit. Somewhere along the lines, this battle became more about beating the crap out of each other instead of some kind of test. They took each lick given with a grunt of pain, but would soon be smiling about it.

Though fun to them, it was a fierce, bloody, and brutal battle to the death to everybody else. They were yelling their lungs out, cheering on their fighter. Omnem threw a huge overhand left that flew in an arc. A bright glent shone in Adam's eyes as he finally found the opening he'd been waiting for.

He caught the wild throw by latching onto it and spun, throwing Omnem over with a judo throw. As he crashed onto the ground, he felt Adam hold his arm against him. Figuring that he was trying to choke him, he laughed as he slowly pushed against Adam's weight.

"You can't outpower me-"*swish* The sound of flesh being torn rendered the roomfull of demons and humans speechless. Omnem opened his eyes to see a familiar, dark-purple blade impaling his chest. He followed the blade up to where it was coming from his forearm. Adam was wordlessly holding onto the sword hilt that had been wedged into his forearm and gotten stuck.

"What...how?" Omnem asked.

"My blades are my Wrath incarnate. If they break, then it doesn't always mean that my Wrath has broken. As long as I have that, then it doesn't matter how many times my blade breaks...I can rematerialize it," Adam explained, panting afterwords.

Omnem couldn't believe it. How did he not recognize that sooner? "I thought you just wanted to beat me barehanded because you were faster. Now I see...you cheated, you bastard." He chuckled as he gave that pitiful excuse.

Adam weakly stood up on his own two feet and gave the biggest shit-eating grin he could, one that Omnem would come to hate so much.

"What do you expect? I'm American, bitch."

They both started laughing and coughing, and groaning, but then started laughing again. Adam pulled Omnem up with the help from some of the nearby daughters. This act greatly confused the humans who were actually left unattended this entire time.

As the two took a step towards what Adam guessed was this place's version of the nurse's office, they both fell flat on their faces from blood loss and exhaustion.

Back at the humans, one of the women finally broke the silence. "So..that guy wasn't here to rescue us?"

**HAhaha, man, I enjoyed writing that. I know some may think I went overboard and might as well as ruined the whole palace, but come on, that was worth it. Well, you're up, TUC. **


	10. Not Alone

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah.  
**

**Yeah, so how'about that plot-twist. I will model this guy's personality and decision making as if I was in his shoes.**

* * *

After I was shown the rest of the factories, I insisted that I must take my leave. Lord knowing my luck, the fortress was probably burnt to ashes or something. Seriously, I was on that bad of terms with Karma, Yevon only knows why. I was obstinate at first, but Omnem insisted that I take an escort since my body was covered in bruises and aches from my fight.

I really pushed myself to the limit. The fight would've been over much quicker if Omnem wasn't a freakin' terminator. Relenting, I accepted the offer for an escort. One of his daughters, Onyx, much to my sore luck, was chosen since we were already familiar with each other. It was a terrible prank, probably because Onyx insisted to her father or something. I could never get a break when I wanted one.

As we left, I had a good feeling with siding with Omnem. The man was already decades ahead of me with building a modernized army. However, as impressive as the ships and machina infantry were, I had my own tricks up my sleeves. I didn't tell him about it on purpose though. I would rather watch his jaw drop to the floor.

"hehehe..." I chuckled lowly to myself. It was enough to get Onyx's attention.

"What amuses you?" she asked curiously.

"Your face," I responded. She scowled and tried to slap me upside the back of the head, but I ducked underneath and jumped aside to avoid a vicious swipe from her claws.

"I was just joking, Tiger. Jeez, you tried to take my head off. Is it that time of the month for ya'll or something?" I joked again. The color change on her face told me she was either embarrassed or infuriated. I hoped the latter, since the first would be kinda awkward.

I sniffed the air around us good but didn't pick up any strange pheromones, nor could I see any. 'Thank God.'

"You are very aggrivating, human," she knowingly insulted. I glared at her, my scowl back on my face.

"That's low, Onyx. Even for a demon."

She gave a proud smile and we continued on. I'm glad that the air isn't so thick between her kind and myself. I must've gained much respect from my close victory over their father and for him to trust me with their plans.

When we made it back to the fortress, it was now nighttime. I was welcomed by the gate guards. Timoth came up to me with a salute.

"Fuhrer, welcome back. How was the meeting?" he asked expectantly.

"Successful, Timoth. We have gained a new and powerful allie with the demons," I answered straightforward. The truth that I was out allying with demons disturbed most.

"Demons, Fuhrer?" one of the guards asked nervously. Even Onyx gave me a surprised look at having told them that much.

"Is that a problem, son?" I asked, eyes narrowing. The former crusader gulped and nodded his head vigorously.

"Absolutely not, Fuhrer! Just making sure I heard right. I follow you, sir."

I looked him in the eyes and saw his aura wavering. He was telling the truth, but out of fear. "Relax, soldier. You won't have to expect to have your heart eaten or anything."

His eyes widen in more fear when Onyx gave him a knowing wink. I, however, turned my attention back to Timoth. "Status report on the base's activities, Timoth."

He stood straight and responded in a clear voice. "Fuhrer, there have been no one found violating the curfew you set in place before your departure. However, your behemoth was found sleeping, but he had blood stains around his mouth. We could find no body, sir."

I closed my eyes and divulged this information carefully. "Typical. Tell me, Timoth, what does it mean when you find a roach in your home?"

The man thought for a few moments but couldn't come up with an answer. "I'm-I'm not sure, sir. What does it mean?"

I opened my eyes and everyone could feel the frustration radiating off me, especially Onyx. My hands were clenched into tight fists and my right one eventually drew one of my hilts. My wrath immediately manifested into my signature weapon, causing the men to take a nervous step back.

"What it means, Timoth, is that where there's one roach, there are many more. Sound the general alarm and gather everyone in the courtyard."

Understanding dawned on the gatekeeper. "Sir? You believe there are infiltrators? It could have been one of the livestock that was eaten."

"You can never be too careful, Timoth. Now, I'm ordering you to sound the general alarm and gather everyone into the field."

He dared not to make me repeat myself again. He ran into the main gate bunker and pressed the alarm button. Immediately, the unimaginably loud blare of the alarm shattered the peaceful slumbers of every occupant in the room. Most had no idea what that sound meant, since it hasn't been used in a while.

While most of the guards began running to clear out the barracks, I told one woman to stop. She had a well-toned body and bright reddish-pink hair and green eyes. She was very beautiful.

"Yes, Fuhrer, what is it?"

She was completely unprepared for the fatal blow I made with my sword, nearly severing her body in half. "It's a shame. You were quite beautiful, but you shouldn't have betrayed me."

Onyx was completely startled by this sudden murder. "Why on Spira did you do that?" She asked from curiosity more then care.

"She reeked of machina oil and melted metal, Onyx. Absolutely no one has permission to be out of curfew, much less to be snooping around in an area that I had restricted to everyone. After we dispose of these pests, I am going to find out why she was being so privy.. It couldn't have been by accident, since everyone besides me who know of that certain area are kept in said space."

Timoth's voice blared over the fortress' intercom system. "**ALL OUTER SANCTUARY PERSONNEL ARE TO REPORT TO THE FIELD AS PER FUHRER CARVER'S COMMAND. ANYONE WHO DOES NOT REPORT AND IS DISCOVERED WILL BE APPREHENDED AND DEALT WITH BY THE FUHRER HIMSELF. I REPEAT: ALL OUTER SANCTUARY PERSONNEL ARE TO REPORT TO THE FIELD AS PER FUHRER CARVER'S COMMAND. ANYONE WHO DOES NOT REPORT AND IS DISCOVERED WILL BE APPREHENDED AND DEALT WITH BY THE FUHRER HIMSELF."**

It took about a minute, but Timoth came back. He was shocked at finding the body of one of his most trusted guards dead at his leader's feet. "Nearith.." he mumbled. He was speechless and looked to me for an explanation.

"One of my inate abilities is an increase sense of smell, Timoth. I'm a better tracker then perhaps any one animal or person you've ever met. I can see things no one else can see. I can hear things no normal human can hear. I can smell a lingering scent that's days old. To prove it, I can tell that you've yet to enter the gate bunker since I've been gone."

Timoth's eyes widen as the accuracy of my claim. "This woman...how long has she been under your command?"

Swallowing, he responded "She was recruited not even three weeks ago, Fuhrer. She showed to be a very able-bodied person." There was more emotion in his words then he anticipated and I soon realized the truth.

"You knew her intimately, Timoth? I am sorry to have hurt you like this, but she was hurting all of us, including you. I hope you can understand that."

He shakily acknowledged the hard truth. I patted him on the shoulder. "She was certainly not alone, Timoth. Help me find these traitors so no one else can hurt you. Can you do that for me, soldier?"

His facial muscles tightened, as did his fists, but they weren't directed at me. They were directed at the unknown party responsible. "I want to kill these bastards, sir. I want to torture and kill them all."

I sensed the hate inside him growing to dangerous levels for a human like him. However, betrayal of this level and this personal to a person would understandably bring about such reactions.

"We will. I promise. Now let us go stomp these roaches out one by one."

I marched off towards the top of a slightly tall hill that stood over where the occupants of this great fortress were being herded. Onyx and Timoth followed close behind, Onyx taking Nearith's body as well. Due to the field being as large as it was, it took us a good minute to finally reach our intended spot. As we arrived, we saw all 1,000 somewhat men and women mingling, confusion evident on most faces, while some of the more experience soldiers held a deadly serious attitude.

When everyone saw me and the other two standing atop the hill, they all quieted down, wanting to know why I woke them up with the general alarm. Gathering my voice, I was able to speak without having to shout, the wind and my topographical position being enough to carry my voice far and wide.

"It seems we have some people who are hard of hearing, or maybe I was speaking some strange language," I started. "I specifically told you all personally that a curfew was going to be put into effect immediately after my departure. Well, while I was gone, some of you decided to be nosy into business that did not concern you."

I motioned to Onyx and she stepped forward, holding up Nearith's body with one arm by her neck so everyone, traitors included, could see her identity, as well as the massive cut across her midsection.

"When I came back, I discovered this woman had traveled into a highly restricted place within the last several hours. How I found it is my little secret that only two people here know of. Now I am certain that this woman did not act alone. For what possible reason she wanted to break this rule, I've no idea," I lied, having figured that there was a third party trying to sabotage me.

"This open act of war will not be tolerated! You may think I'm being arrogant, but to think my only abilities are over sight and mind will make it that much easier for me to find you. To those who'll hear this, whereever you are, you made a grave error in standing against me. You made a worse mistake in underestimating me. But you made the biggest mistake of all, thinking that I'm someone who you can step on without getting bit."

I made my way down towards the army. "Timoth, I want your men to form a perimeter around the army. If anyone tries to break ranks or run, shoot them with the perimeter cannons." He nodded and went off to spread the order to the others.

It took them about three minutes to reach the large cannons nearby but they soon had the large guns pointed at the army, making most, if not all, the people nervous as hell.

"I want everyone to get atleast an arm's length between each other. Now!" I commanded.

The order was soon repeated and passed down. Most of the army wasn't used to this kind of treatment, so they weren't as quick as I preferred. With my sword, I chopped down the first man I came too. His screams and curses as he died caused everyone to triple their speed. When all movements stopped, I kneeled down to the deceased man and subtly inhaled his scent.

'Smells of liquor and sweat, as well as the scent of several other people. He had stayed in his barracks.' I laid my hand on his face to close his eyes. "I'm sorry, soldier. I will not forget your face, nor your name when I learn it."

This was an action that greatly confused many of the surrounding people that could see and hear me, as well as Onyx. I stood up, my face set in stone again. "Let us continue, Onyx."

_Onyx P.O.V._

I didn't know when I started obeying his orders. I just found myself complying. The authority and decisiveness Adam's voice and tone carried was alluring and dominating. I found myself quite excited at the prospect of killing someone, so I did not argue when he told me what to do.

I watched curiously as this man that I now called 'ally' and 'friend' made his way down the crooked ranks, getting very close to each person. First, he'd look them square in the eyes for about a minute. Most shook nervously and broke into cold sweats under his intense gaze. I, myself, felt disturbed by it. I found myself impressed by it, in all honesty.

After the staredown, he'd subtly sniff them-not loud enough to make a noise, but silently and deeply. He'd go into deep thought for about a minute and move on. I could smell the tremendous amount of sweat coming from the men and women already inspected as they made their way down the rank. The smell made me nauseas. Some even pissed themselves, making it hard for me not to laugh.

I decided to not let him have all the fun and begin to play my own mind games with the ones he'd already inspected. Given my more demon-like body that I had not decided to hide, those who knew what I was from stories trembled more. The recognition of my species bringing fear to these criminals was almost flattering. I decided to be especially mean to this one man who looked about seventeen.

"You're just a child. What are you doing in a place like this?" I asked softly. He, not knowing what I was but still fearful of my true form, nervously responded with some stutters.

"I-I w-wanted to find a p-place to live. I wanted to be-become tougher so I c-could kill the bastard t-that murdered my sister," he shakily responded while I would lightly rake my claws across his cheek, making little scratches.

I had noticed how his stuttering almost stopped the more he talked, trying to put on a strong front. I leaned my face close to him to where when I spoke, my cold breath sent chills down his spine. Many of the men and women around us probably thought I was about to eat him or something.

"Don't be afraid. Unless I have permission, you are off the menu."

"I'm not afraid," he said in a stronger voice. Oh, how cute.

"Do not deny your fear, child. If we don't have fear of something, then what will push us to make ourselves stronger," I said, quoting Adam from much earlier. Said man heard me and gave me a pointed stare. I gave a sly smile as he went back to inspecting the people instead of saying anything to me.

"Those were the words our Alpha told me and my sister just this morning," I admitted, causing the boy to look in disbelief. "Yes, even we demons have fears. However, he taught me and my sister to not let it hold us back, but make it what drives us." I patted him on the head and went to catch up with Adam. I grinned all the more when I heard several people let out the air they had unknowingly been holding.

'I could get use to this,' I thought cheerfully. A loud scream tore through the silence as I saw Adam run a man through before cleaving the his head clean off.

"One down," he said loud enough to be heard by anybody in the immediate vicinity. I came to his side, curious as to what he discovered. He came close to my ear. "I could not see any deceit in his soul, but he failed to mask or rid the scent of the same smell I discovered on Nearith. Keep a close eye if any tries to escape or attack you."

I nodded, but felt flattered at that last part. He didn't just tell me to make sure nobody tried to move, but he also showed concern over my well-being. This guy was so diverse. It was getting on my nerves, really. Just when I thought I had him figured out, he'd surprise me.

After he finished speaking, he continued on down the line. Soon, we finished the first rank and they all were allowed to depart, but told to stay in the vicinity. I came up to his side and clung onto his arm like a child. I knew it bugged him.

"It's no fair. You're having all the fun," I half-heartedly complained. He looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, that's unfortunate. I was gonna let us take turns killing any I found and let you play with their bodies after we were done, but if you want to whine like a five year old, then I'll treat you like a five year old. You want to sit off to the side and watch me kill them by myself?"

I gasped at the cruelty of his punishment. "You wouldn't. That's beyond cruel, Adam."

"Oh, so we're on a first name basis, now? My, you're the type to rush into things?" he jokingly mocked. My eyes narrowed into slits as he chalked another point for himself.

"Then be a good girl and kill the guy three columns down. I've already caught his stench and it's the same as the others," he replied with a straight face. My eyes widen as I looked between him and the suspected traitor, then him, then the traitor, then back to him.

I heart did a flip in joy when he said, "I mean it. Have fun, be mindful of the others." I gave him a soft pat on the cheeks.

"I take back everything mean that I said just then." He rolled his eyes as I made my way straight to the man. Said man's eyes locked onto me and saw the hungry look in my eyes and knew he was caught.

As I ran at him, he quickly pulled out a short sword and sliced at my midsection. I was too into the moment to be able to dodge and closed my eyes just as the blade was inches within cutting me wide open. The sound of a sword cutting flesh filled the air, but I never felt any pain. Did one feel pain when they died?

I peeped my eyes open and saw the man standing there as before, but something was missing. Oh, his sword arm was. I was even more surprised by Adam holding the assailant's arm inches from mine. I looked and saw the blade in enough contact with my skin to draw a tiny amount of blood.

'He saved my life.'

Even as the man pulled out a knife with his other hand, I was still stupified. 'He saved my life.'

That was the only thing I could think of as Adam proceeded to catch the man's swing and twist the wrist, eventually enough to tear it completely off. Everyone except me instantly gave them some room.

'He saved my life...even if he could have just let me die with little consequence.'

I was still stuck on that thought, even as Adam lunged at the man, driving his thumbs into the guy's eye sockets and up into his brain, causing him to jerk spastically. Even as Adam finished the guy off with a powerful elbow strike to the neck, breaking every bone in his neck.

'Why would he risk his life for me? Sure, Father would be pissed, but that can't be the whole reason, could it?'

I was still numbed as I felt Adam's hands, which were at first glance calloused and rough, gently grip my shoulders and turn me to face him.

"You all right?" he stoically asked. I slowly got my wits back and nodded my head. "I told you to be cautious, didn't I? I guess you really are the type of girl to rush things."

He didn't say it like he was reprimanding me, and he didn't laugh or chuckle at the joke. The words flowed from his mouth as casually as the words before. "Never lose focus. Never close your eyes when death approaches, because when you close them, you'll never open them again," he spoke solemnly.

"Thank you," I muttered. I couldn't believe I let my guard down so easily. I couldn't believe I almost got killed by a human. I gritted my teeth in anger. The frustration I was feeling was indescribable. I clenched my fists till my claws drew blood from my palms, but I ignored the pain. It was nothing compared to what I almost experienced-no, what I should have experienced.

He patted me on the cheek and with a "Release that hate on the next one," he continued the wordless interrogations of all the men and women. I steeled my nerves, my anger and hate for humans growing even more. I wanted to massacre every human around me, Adam excluded, but I knew he would stop me in whatever way possible, whether that mean with lethal force or not. He probably could easily subdue me like I was a child.

About twenty more men down the row and he finally made eye contact with me. He kept his stare on me for a few seconds before moving to the next person. The person he secretly pointed out felt his body ease up. As Adam was at the next person, he looked at me again and motioned with his eyes the one he just inspected.

I wordlessly nodded and went behind their row. The man who thought he was safe never suspected me as I gripped his head and twisted it completely backwards. Even with that gruesome death, I was not satisfied. I plunged my hand straight through his gaping mouth and it exploded out the back of his head. I pulled my hand out and stabbed him through the back, my hand ripping out his chest with his heart in my grip.

As I retrieved my hand, I launched a thunder spell at the still standing corpse. Lightning struck down with deadly accuracy and fried the man into a smoking husk. I eagerly devoured the heart right there in front of a thousand soldiers. I could feel hundreds of pairs of eyes on me but my glare caused them all to look somewhere else. Adam had watched the execution for a few seconds before casually resuming his task. As I came to his side, I found myself giving him a small hug.

His body stiffen as my body pressed against his, but he wordlessly patted my back, knowing there was no need for anything to be spoken. He knew killing that man was what I really needed right now to vent some of my frustration. That wasn't the only way though. If one of my sisters were here, then I could really let off the steam and built-up stress. But I was the only Desire Demon here, so killing a few more humans would have to suffice. Another idea came up, but I shook it aside.

I ended the rare show of vulnerability and continued to follow in his wake. The night was young and there were still about 800 men and women to inspect. There would hopefully be plenty of chances to redeem my injured pride. However, the chance for Adam to put on a small show for me occured when not a minute after I had hugged him, a few of the men started freaking out.

"The hell, this guy is insane! He just let a demon eat a guy's heart and did nothing!" - said dead man number one, who was soon accompanied by dead man number two.

"Screw this, I'm out of here!" The two men broke ranks and took off across the field.

Adam held his hand up to wait for his signal. "These men, if they were innocent, would have been free to leave on their own violition!" he said aloud as the two guys' bodies became smaller and smaller. They were probably about 150yds away now. I looked expectantly at him, but his face never changed.

"However, to leave during such a time of treachery, and in such a cowardly manner, I find their innocence hard to approve. The punishment for such a crime against oneself and us...is death!"

His hand took the shape of a fingergun and he took aim. The cannons seemed to follow his every move as if he was guiding them through his own eyes. At about 300yds away, the men were almost dots to everyone, but to Adam, he might as well have been right behind them. He fired his imaginary gun, his hand recoiling as if he had shot a real pistol.

Blue electicity that had been charging flew from the twin gun turrents and ripped across the field with an ear shattering scream. When it hit, the men and everything within 40yds of them were instantly vaporized in a large explosion. While he was absolutely certain of their demise, Adam looked with his predator vision to peer into the dust clouds. Save for the hot ground, there were no signs of survivors.

Then, amazing everyone, Adam went back to inspecting the men and women as if nothing had happened. I wordlessly stayed by his side ready to either defend him or attack someone when necessary. I don't know where this protectiveness came from.

We went at this for two straight hours, only discovering two more traitors. They were quickly dealt with by both Adam and myself. I was more prepared and alert when one tried to cut me open with the same type of sword. I sidestepped and weaved under each swing before casting a blizzard spell that I had quietly charged. Ice spikes appeared in mid-air around the man and slammed into him at the same time. The crowd had soon learn to put some distance between them and us whenever we fought someone.

We'd killed about seven, not including those cowards from earlier. That was all that Adam sensed, but he still didn't let his guard down as we made our way to the last row. Everything went okay till he stopped infront of a woman who wasn't bad looking, but the overloading smell of alcohol to Adam's sensitive nose nearly made him go cross-eyed. He even had to take a step back.

The woman in particular was dressed with skin showing here and there, meaning to try to be eye catchy. 'A filthy whore,' I thought. Adam nodded as if he could read my mind, though in reality he was nodding in confirmation of one of his thoughts. Her smell of sweat and alcohol made it hard for his nose to detect anything else, but when he looked into her eyes, he saw that her aura was very dark, yet calm.

He began thinking about what this could possibly mean. The others that were found to be traitors, he couldn't see anything wrong with their spiritual aura, yet this woman's is darker then the rest, yet confident, as if she thinks she's impervious. Several theories began materializing, but now was not the time to think them over.

He came and placed a strong hand on my shoulder, gesturing towards the woman. Much to his surprise, he notice her aura starting to waver as she saw the look we were giving her. I was about to gladly have some fun with her, but he stopped me.

"I believe something is happening that I can't see," he spoke low into my ear, his cold breath tickling it. "We'll question her and if need be, I'll let you try to pry some information from her. That will not be a problem, will it?"

His voice was firm, but not threatening. I shook my head and took her out of the ranks. "We'll take you for questioning, human."

The woman jerked back from my touch, but my other hand shot out and gripped her around the neck. "Please resist so I can have a reason to kill you," I spoke, almost in a begging, mocking way. "The Alpha wants to just question you, but if you act up, then I get to have some fun with you."

The struggling woman paled and ceased her resistance. "Way to ruin my fun," I griped. Going along with Adam for the rest of the way, there were no more traitors. When we finally finished, it was probably 1am. The entire fort was sleepy and eager to go back to bed. Adam dismissed them and they left sluggishly, talking and griping about everything that had occured in the past hours.

He handed the woman over to Timoth and ordered her to be locked in a cell till the morning when he would question her. Right now, everyone needed their sleep. I was very sleepy myself now that the excitement and fun was over. Like he had promised, he gave me permission to do whatever I wished to the dead bodies, which I thanked him for, but he caught me yawning.

I was so sleepy. I looked at him and couldn't find a trace of fatigue anywhere on his body. How much stamina does this guy got? He saw me looking and chuckled.

"It's not nice to stare," he said. I waved him off.

"Don't flatter yourself. Besides, that's contradictory because you literally stared into a 1,000 souls within the last four hours. You should follow your own advice," I shot back, smirking at my apparent victory.

But once again...

"Aw, is someone jealous?"

..he proved to be a very frustrating opponent. I could only use denial as my defense, as weak as that sounded. He got me there.

"You irritate me to no end, Carver," I said, switching to using his last name. Much to my chagrin, he didn't appear affected by it.

"You should get some rest, Onyx. I can see the muscles in your eyelids straining to stay open, and your breaths are becoming slower. Pretty soon, you'll be asleep right where you are," he informed me.

I yawned, proving his theory, but I had to get one last hit in. "Oh, so you were checking me out. Are you some sort of perv?" I asked in a sultry tone. Adam's eyes widen at his mistake and being called a perv.

"W-what?...Perv?..Don't be rediculous," he stuttered. His cheeks darkened at the claim but it was too dark to see any difference for me. He wasn't a perv, he knew that, but sometimes he did try to stop his eyes from wondering. That would usually force him to close his eyes and see everything with his negative vision.

"Just...go get some rest. I'll see you in the morning," he ordered with a sigh and walked off. I walked off to go to my room, but about halfway to the barracks, I realized that I didn't even have a room to stay in, and I surely was not about to sleep anywhere near these humans and Ronsos.

I ran to try to catch up with Adam but I managed to just see his form disappear into the entrance of the shorter tower. I rushed to close the distance, because it would be really awkward if he had to open the door of his room to see me standing there, needing a place to sleep.

As I entered the tower, most of the guards were playing a game of cards, so they didn't notice me as I ran up the stairs.

Jeez, how fast did this guy walk! I had ran almost up the entire stairway and was probably a floor below where Adam's room was. Thankfully, as soon as I turned the last corner, I saw him bringing out a large key and unlock the door. He must've been too tired to notice me as I was almost within arm's reach of him. As he pulled open the door, I got a great idea.

I casually walked past him, ignoring his wide-eyed look, and stepped into his unfurnished room. I sighed as there was really nothing in here but a mat and a hammock. Not even thinking about the former, I walked over and crawled into his hammock. I was shocked at how comfortable it was!

I heard footsteps come near me and to be honest, I expected him to either flip the hammock over to throw me out, or crawl in beside me. I could feel his gaze on me but I tried to pretend I was already asleep. Much to my astonishment, he undressed where he was and slept on the mat on the hard, cold floor. After a couple of minutes, I heard his soft, easy breathing as he was finally asleep. I closed my eyes and tried to go asleep, but even after ten minutes of it, all I could do was change positions and try to sleep again.

I looked over at his sleeping form, looking very peaceful. Being that I was a girl, I took the opportunity to silently gaze over his strong body, seeing muscles in some places that I didn't know exist. A sharp, cold wind blew in from the window, causing me to shiver and snuggle the blanket tighter to my body. I wasn't use to sleeping in such a low-maintenanced environment. Back at our old palace, we had many comfortable and warm beds and pillows that we looted on our many ventures throughout the centuries.

Then Elijah came and ruined all of that. He destroyed almost my entire family, over 600 of my sisters, and nearly killed my father. Then those Paladins burned down our palace with our fallen sisters still inside. My heart warmed my body to a more comfortable temperature. Another cold wind and this time, I saw Adam's sleeping form shift on the floor, completely bare and naked against the elements.

She felt a tudge of guilt inside, which was extremely rare. Adam not only spared her and her sister's lives when he had every right to kill them, but he befriended Father and even risked himself to save my life. He did that much without a moment's hesitation and here I came and stole his bed and covers. I shouldn't even be alive.

"Adam," I softly called.

"Is everything alright, Onyx?" he asked immediately, which made me slightly jerk.

"Have you been awake this whole time?" He turned his head my way and I could see the haziness of sleep clouding his eyes.

"No, I'm just a very light sleeper. I'm always alerted to the slightest sounds," he answered calmly.

"For how long? One doesn't develope that skill in just a few months," I asked, thinking I could learn something else about our new ally.

"I'll make a long story short," he said, then yawned. "I've always had to keep my guard up, even in my past life. Even since I was little."

"In the Other World?" He gave me a lazy stare then returned it to the ceiling.

"Yes, in the Other World." After a bit of a silent moment, he started again. "Is there something you wanted to wake me for?"

I chuckled. 'Is there something I 'wanted'? He's still thinking about my well-being. Crazy man.' "I'm sorry I took your bed," I apologized, and sincerely meant it.

"It's of no consequence. In fact, you're doing me a favor by breaking it in. Are you still cold?"

I probably already knew how he knew I was cold. "I can see your body heat fluctuating. The core is heating up as your surface is cooling. That would explain the shivering," he answered, confirming my theory.

"Are you cold?" I asked. He crossed his arms.

"No, I'm actually use to the cold weather. Back in the Other World, when the weather sometimes got cold enough to freeze water, I would be wearing shorts and short-sleeved shirts and be barefooted or have sandals. The other kids would think I was always crazy."

"You were alone?"

He sighed. "For all of my childhood, yes...I was alone. While kids would be waking up to their mother's smile, I would wake up under a torn bedsheet in a deteriorated home alone. While kids played lots of games, the only game I played was survival. While most of the kids had people to take care of them, it was survival of the fittest everyday in my life."

Yes, I remember him briefly scratching the surface of that topic when he and Father had dinner but wouldn't divulge more. I felt even worse now that I was leaving him out in the cold like he was as a child. And worse, he was always alone. I was never alone. I always had either my father, or one or two of my sisters with me. Never had I been alone in my alone, except for when Adam kept me here as Becera went to deliver his message to Father.

For that two hours, I was more alone and afraid then I'd ever been. I couldn't imagine the strength he had to possess to push forward like he has. It was truly amazing to me.

"Don't pity me, please," he softly demanded. I looked confused at the order. "I don't want to be pitied for my past. I didn't pity myself anymore when enough time passed because it got me nowhere. I am where I am today because I refused to bend to the life that had befallen me like some many other people would have."

I couldn't help but smile..genuinely smile as he shared this kind of information with me. "I can completely understand why Ansem chose you. I think he made the right choice. You are something rare, Adam."

I saw him rub his eyes. Unseen to me, he had a few tears falling down the side of his face.

"Finally," he whispered in a extremely low voice. "Someone doesn't pity me for my past."

I watched him silently as he rolled onto his side, uncaring of the fact that he was flashing his butt at me. I stifled a giggle to keep from ruining this sincere moment.

"Thank you for saving my life earlier."

"It's alright. No harm done, except to that man. You should get some sleep now," he said, hoping to end the conversation.

"Come sleep with me," I suggested, surprising even myself. "You'll be warmer, and for once, not alone."

"I couldn't," he said, but I scoffed.

"It's not like I'm asking you to have sex with me, you prude." He was silent for several minutes, making me worried that I might have overstepped my bounds. Sighing tiredly, I rolled over and faced away from him and into the corner. Several minutes passed and I still felt guilty. I wanted to do something, but I didn't want to wake him up again, afterall, he has had one helluva busy day and night.

The sudden tug on the end of the hammock had me turn my head to see Adam slowly getting into the hammock. When he finally got situated behind me, he had tried to be respectful of personal space, so he had wrapped his arms around himself as he laid on his back. I rolled my eyes and pulled his arm over my waist, meeting slight resistance.

"Stop being so innocent. It's not gonna kill you."

"I'd rather not anybody else find out about this," he said. Catching his meaning, I laughed.

"Don't worry about Father. If he were to suddenly walk in here with us like this, sure, his first reaction would be to try to cut your dick off-" Adam cringed at that, "-but he knows that none of his daughters would ever lie to him. I would tell him it was strictly to keep warm since you live like a caveman," I explained.

He still didn't seem that sure. "This is strictly for warmth, to you atleast, right?" I gave him a wicked smile, one that he learned quickly to hate, and gave him a wink.

"Maybe, just don't get any funny ideas," I said, even as I backed my body up against his; head resting on his neck, back flush against his chest, firm rear against his 'firming' area, legs entangling with his, and even my tail wrapped around his waist. I knew that any other man I had met in my life would have probably ravaged me right then and there, but somehow Adam kept himself completely in check, which actually amazed me.

Now I wasn't asking for it intentionally or anything, I was just stating a fact. He inwardly groaned, knowing that this sincere, innocent act was probably going to get him gutted, castrated, then eaten by her Father and her sisters. Whatever was left would probably be fed to that Kraken.

After a few moments of getting comfortable, I still felt him resisting his arms around me. I decided to shiver on purpose, and it worked perfectly as he wrapped his arms tighter, believing that he was keeping me warm. Eventually, he loosened up more and his head started nudging more into the back of mine, his breath tickling my ears.

In those next few moments, I felt more safe there then anywhere else. For the first time ever, Adam didn't feel alone. Before my mind went to sleep, I heard him softly whisper into my ear. "Thank you."

* * *

**And that's it for this chapter. I thought about adding some AdamxOnyx fluff, but don't worry, this isn't going to change their earlier relationship of friendly mockery, just that it'll build more trust between them. Also, it might give Adam something else to fight for besides world domination. I'm not saying love, but friendship. He's made his first real friend in Spira. By the way, you should definately listen to these songs at this URL when they both get into the room together. It'll set the mood so well.**

**If it doesn't show up, the go on youtube and type in 'Bleach best sad songs (Soundtracks)', and it's about 14:34 seconds long. Btw, TUC, I outsmarted you when your circle guy said that I only used simple mind tricks. But they didn't expect to have their scent be their giveaway, well, atleast for some of them. The others are still in hiding, but I will get them. bwuhahahaha, btw, the fluff b/w Onyx and Adam was too much was it? Was she too out of character?**


	11. Sorry for the big fuss

The Wrathful One

**Author's Note: Okay, just to get this out of the way, this is an AU (alternate universe) so nobody better give me any crap about how this didn't happen or yatta-yatta-yah. To TheUndyingCrystal, I'm terribly sorry for how late this really is.  
**

* * *

As I awoke the next morning, I can't say that I've ever had a more peaceful sleep. My slight sturing wasn't enough to wake the sleeping woman next to me, and of that, I was thankful. After removing myself, Onyx's tail ensnared her own leg reflexively. I sighed and tucked the single, skinny blanket under her sides.

I put on some boxers and grabbed a towel from the room below mine, which housed bathing necessities. I also grabbed a change of clothes, which was just some navy blue, pants that had a slit on each side all the way from the hip to above the knee, then another one from below the knee to the ankle. I found them to be very comfy, and that without the free entrance for a breeze. I was headed for the underground river which ran underneath the fortress through a cavern. The place was deserted, save for the subtle whines of some insects. The water was flowing freely from the ground and I found myself stepping into it up to my waist.

The running water was very cold, but to me, it was just enough to wake up my senses. I gathered a handful of it and splashed my face, causing my eyes to shoot open from the chilly sensating.

"Aww..." I sighed lowly. "That's one way to wake up in the morning."

I continued to wash my body, sometimes getting chill bumps over certain areas. I spent about ten minutes doing this before I got out and shook myself dry before using the towel. Making my way back up through the underground stairs, I arrived in one of the large hangars built into the wall. The sun hasn't peeped over the horizon yet, but one could still see the light breaking through the sky, giving the world a baby-blue hue.

Spira was definately beautiful when there wasn't anybody moving about. My hearing slightly picked up a couple of bird tweeps. Looking toward their direction, I saw their faint outlines on one of the shorter tower's window holes. I focused my eyes and was soon able to see them as if they were at an arm's length away. A mother was dutifully feeding its chewed up prey to a trio of babies. When she held it over their heads, they extended their fleshy pink necks to receive their meal.

Despite my harsh appeal, I had a very soft warm spot for moments like these; to see innocent little creatures going about their own business, completely oblivious to the happenings around them. In a way, I both pitied and envied them. Perhaps, when I've dominated the world with Omnem...I can finally live like those birds; to live in freedom from man-kind and live with the flow of time instead of this fast-paced nonsense I'm going through now.

As I was going back to the tower, loud footsteps brought my attention to Charlie. I hadn't seen that behemoth since early yesterday. It hadn't occured to me where he was hiding. As he got closer, he tried to paw me, so I caught it with both hands to prevent any kind of injury to myself. However, I wasn't prepared for the roar in my face that smelled of decaying corpses. And given that fact that the number of nose receptors in my nostrils have more then quadrupled, I was nearly knocked out by it.

"Man, you've got the worse case of morning breath ever, Charlie. You brushed your teeth after eating those bodies, didn't you?"

He cocked his head at me, not understanding my words. I just chuckled and let go of the behemoth's paw. "Come on, boy. I've got something for ya."

I really did have something for him; something I thought he'd enjoy. With some coaxing, I managed to lure him down into the caverns below the fort. He didn't really like the darkness, which I found ironic sense he'd spent God knows how long in Mt. Gagazet. After making sure no one was around, using every ability I knew of to look for any more traitors or witnesses, I followed a series a tunnels.

Now theses weren't any normal tunnels. There was a natural security measure installed by the earth goddess herself. These tunnels formed a large labrynth about three hundred yards long and wide, and two stories tall with two levels. Any of the deadends would lead to some kind of traps like quicksand or natural gas pockets. The really funny thing was that even the correct way led to a dead end. The only true safe way was to go through one of the supposedly dead ends. All you had to do was hold your breath for three minutes while moving.

Was this the only way to get to where we were going? Absolutely not. This was just a secondary way I found while investigating the cavern system. Why am I taking it now, instead of using the front door? Well, I was just making sure I would lose any possible tails. Maybe I was being too paranoid, but maybe not. Who's to say I didn't have someone following me? I'm sure I didn't get all of the spies in my fort last night, and that goes to show that my abilities can't do everything.

After finally maneuvering the maze for three more levels down, I came upon the rear entrance of the cavern I had sealed off. Bending over, I lifted the heavy door, a door that only myself, and possibly Onyx, could lift. No one else in the fort would be this strong. Getting it over my head, I stepped inside and dropped the 1,300lb door. It's massive weight crashing into the ground created a loud reverberation that echoed throughout the entire complex, letting everyone know that I was here.

As I took in my surroundings, all I could see around me was machinery moving on its own, sometimes with an Al-bhed engineer or two keeping up maintenance or overseeing its work. This was the workshop, a place where all the machinery and workers involved in creating the individual parts were housed. A floor above me was the smelting facility and cooling plants. The two floors below this one are the sub-assembly lines, where the individual parts are assembled into larger parts and organized.

The final room at the very bottom of the massive cavern is the main assembly hall. As I stepped over to the railing that lined the circular walls near the middle, I could see parts of all shapes and sizes being towed down to the floors below via small and large chains on an automated pulley system. Looking over the railing, I could look down all the way into the main assemly hall and see the very beginnings of our labors coming to fruition.

It wasn't much now, but in about three weeks or a month, it should be complete. This facility was nowhere near as high-tech or impressive as Omnem's underground factories, but the Al-bhed were hard working and enthusiastic about this new challenge and didn't slack or complain, which I thought highly of. Though Omnem's forces now had superior numbers and naval ships, this would trump any of his ground units. The only thing that should give it trouble on land is if those cybernetic foot-soldiers of his are good at climbing up moving parts, then I'd have to worry about that.

Was I planning war against Omnem? Certainly not, but did I fully trust him? A snow-ball's chance in hell at that. I've only known him for a day; there was no way I would trust someone that fast, Onyx being a possible acception.

As I made my rounds throughout the facilities on all floors, inspecting the work, all the Al-bhed saluted me with a smile on their faces. I'd give them a curt nod and they'd be at it again. I left the facility through the front door this time, bidding the men nearby a good day. Dropping the door down, I made my way back up groundside.

I took my time walking to the guard's bunker at the entrance. When I got there, most were still snoozing while the ones on watch were putting effort into maintaining their professionalism. They were glad they hadn't fallen asleep when I came up unannounced. When the one on watch announced my presence, everyone shot up at attention.

"Gentlemen, get everyone back onto the field within ten minutes. We're going to turn this so called 'army' into something presentable, starting today," I ordered.

They acknowledged and hurried off to wake everyone up. I took a deep breath of the cool, morning air, the saltiness from the sea giving it some flavor for my nostrils. I looked out over the sea and land from the guard bunker's opening. I couldn't help but admire its beauty, yet I frowned deeply when I imagined what kind of destruction it would see once I began my conquest.

I sighed, but I felt a smooth hand on my back. "You okay?" Onyx asked.

"Of course," I said half-heartedly, "I'm just enjoying the serene view while it lasts. There will probably be many destructive battles ahead of me, both in different lands and at my doorstep."

"You're a nature lover?" she asked, surprised evident on her face.

"In a way, yes. Nature is nature. I actually look up to it. Even though demons and humans consider themselves so mighty, so important, if all of them were to just suddenly disappear from the face of this planet, Nature wouldn't even notice. In fact, it would recover and thrive. It stays in perfect balance at all times, yet there are instances where either humans or demons interfere with a species' course, either by affecting its environment, or by moving it from its environment to another. These instances of interrupting the balance that Nature has in place are almost always disastrous for everyone," I explained calmly.

Onyx put a finger on her chin in thought, then scratched one of her horns. "So..the whole reason why you're trying to conquer the planet is to ensure that Nature's balance remains perfect?"

I chuckled softly. "Close, Onyx. Unless you want to come watch or help out, then will you excuse me? I have an army to train."

I turned to walk out and Onyx followed. "There's nothing else to do since you won't let me eat or rape anyone," she muttered.

The day progressed onwards as the men and women were split up into groups based upon their areas of expertise. There were heavy fighters, light and swift infantry, heavy and light gunners, a few snipers, and white and black magick users. I was surprised by the amount of the magick users and was actually interested in the art, since I wasn't a user of it.

While most of the areas of combat were split up, it was mandatory for evryone to learn close-quarters combat. Hand to hand was the trunk from which all forms of combat branched from, so it was imperative for a warrior to learn it, especially gunners and magick casters.

There were a few dozen men and women who were already adept in it, so I elected them as mentors, who would tudor under me and Onyx. She was just as reluctant to work with them as they were with her, so it took a little bit of coersion to get them in line. Apparently, devouring a person in front of everyone was not the best first impression she's ever made.

About an hour later, everyone was working to get better. The massive field within the walls provided more then enough space to set up different kinds of ranges for the gunners, archers, and magick casters with plenty of room to spare. The large pit in the middle became my personal close-quarters combat arena where I would teach step by step instructions to those under me.

This continued for for several hours without incident till someone passed out from dehydration. I appointed about fifty people to be a support group, tasked with bringing fresh water from the river underground to the thirsty soldiers. Charlie was a great help to them as they would strap him with buckets and have him haul the majority of the water.

As the day progressed into noon, lunch was soon approaching. I gave everyone an hour to rest up, rehydrate, and get some food into their growling stomachs. Their reactions to the change of schedule today was surprisingly positive. Many felt like they were finally accomplishing something constructive, even the ones who were really struggling with the physical exertion.

Turns out there was a stronger conviction in these people then I had originally thought. As I made my way to one of the few trees that dotted the field, I was joined by a sweaty Onyx. She looked flushed from the heat and physical activity.

"Hard day?"

She groaned. "We don't normally train much because we are naturally stronger in both strength, speed, and magicks then humans are. I'm sore in muscles I didn't know I had. You?"

"Just another day," I responded cheekily. She did the desire-demon equivalent of a hiss at me. My laughter was interrupted when I heard a low rumbling in the distance. My super-human hearing picked up what sounded like a low roaring, though it never stopped. Then it also sounded like a freakin' wind tunnel. I sprinted from my spot towards the wall and leaped up to about the half-way mark. With another leap, I was at the top of the wall, standing between two of the protruding fin-like structures that lined it.

Onyx was following me, but she was well behind at the moment. I squinted my eyes towards the general direction of the sound till I saw a black dot on the horizon, coming from the direction of Kilika. I was finally joined by Onyx, who was slightly huffing but still alert. By now, her hearing could pick up the noise as well.

"What is that?" she asked. I was beating my head mentally, cuz I know that noise sounded familiar.

"I know I've heard it before but where? Where? Where?" As the black dot grew larger, it all became too clear. "A jet? In Spira?"

"An airship?" she asked. "There's only one that I know of, but I had no idea it was finished already."

"What are you talking about, Onyx? Does that jet belong to Omnem?" She nodded. As the jet came within a few miles, my eyes could see both the heat coming from its engines and the basic frame of it. It sure didn't look like any jet I'd seen before, but there was no mistaking it. Add to its strange appearance that it was heading right for his fortress and I was as curious as a cat.

I ordered the men not to fire as the jet flew over the walls and began turning around to search for a decent parking place. After a whole minute wasted of just trying to softly land the jet, I just yelled at him, whether he could hear me or not. "YOU'VE GOT THE ENTIRE FIELD TO LAND ON!"

Finally, he landed it. We met him as he exited the futuristic machine. "I'm not even going to act surprised anymore," I said, admiring the jet's sleek design.

"Hahaha, well, I couldn't reveal everything to you so soon," Omnem said, in his human form.

"Obviously, Omnem. That makes two of us," I hinted, and smirking when I saw he understood. "Don't worry, I will reveal it in due time. Since we just started on it, there's alot to do, so you won't really see much of it," I explained. "Afterall, after seeing your forces, I can't help but feel like a challenge has been issued to me, and I take challenges seriously. When it's finished, you'll all get to take it for a test run."

"That's alright, Adam. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise," the demon of Pride said. He looked towards his daughter who bowed respectfully.

"Father, it is good to see you are well this day. How is everything on Kilika?"

"We've destroyed everyone within the Kilika Temple and even resurrected one of the ancient spirits, Arvaak," he announced, causing her to grin stupidly.

"That's great! I wish I could have been there."

"And that's not all. I recently just came back from an undisclosed location, but I met one of the queen's of hell." I couldn't help but chuckle at the shocked, open-mouthed expression Onyx made. "I'll tell you about it later, but right now, I have some serious business to attend to with Adam. It involves all of us, but him personally."

I arched an eyebrow at that statement, clearly having my interest caught like in a trap. "About me? Please, do tell, Omnem."

The demon nodded but spoke to Onyx. "Daughter, I need you to quickly go to Adam's room and retrieve an ancient artifact that's hidden in part of the wall. We must recover it immediately."

O.O-me

O.o-Onyx

"When has there been an artifact in my room?" I asked.

"For many years it was hidden there. I'll explain more later," he assured. Right, but there was more to this I knew.

"And what about the business with me personally?"

Just as he was about to speak, a low rumbling sound reached our ears.

"Hmmm?" we both wondered and looked around us for the source of the noise. Suddenly, the alarm started to go off all over the base.

"Shit! That's the alarm for everyone to get to prepare for an attack!" I answered Omnem's unasked question. "Who is it? Bevelle?" I shouted up the wall. The sentry pointed out towards the valley before the front wall of Outer Sanctuary.

"Unidentified air-borne enemy approaching fast, Fuhrer!" he shouted. I looked towards Omnem.

"Is it one of yours, cuz that alarm isn't just for some kind of avian attack?" He shook his head.

Hearing all I needed, I ordered the men to man the wall's defenses and fire on the bogey. "Come with me," Omnem spoke. He rushed back into the jet and prepared it. Instead of getting it, I hopped on top of it and got my swords ready. Hundreds of men all around us were sprinting towards their posts or for any defensive positions.

Despite the suddeness of it all, I was rather excited. This was the first attack my fortress would endure. I don't intend on having it destroyed. The jet lifted up and by that time, my God's Eyes could see over the wall. It took no time at all to find the threat. To my shock, it was a man in some kind of cloak, wearing a white mask. Her was flying through the air at high speeds.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" I shouted, my deep voice booming across the fortress. Many, if not all of the men were looking at me questioningly. "WE DON'T KNOW IF HE HAS ANY HOSTILE INTENTIONS YET, BUT BE READY! GET THE HEAVY CANNONS MOUNTED AS WELL. YOU BETTER ALREADY BE CHARGED BY THE TIME HE GETS HERE!"

A chorus of shouts of "Yes, Fuhrer!" and "Yes, Alpha!" sounded throughout the massive fortress. By the time the jet was in the air, the mysterious man flew past the massive walls and stopped in front of the jet, his expression impossible to tell with the mask. But luckily, I didn't need a mask to see what he was like, just his eyes.

We stared at each other eye-to-eye, not blinking one bit. I stood atop the jet with two wrath swords manifested and lowered.

"I'm Adam Wrath, commander of this fortress. Please state your business, stranger." My voice wasn't harsh, but I made it forceful enough to let him know I meant business.

"You surprise me by not firing at me on sight, given my seemingly hostile entrance," he spoke with a deep voice as well, absent of any coldness as well. "You're smarter then most who I've met."

A man of experience, eh? He talks like one. "When I saw you approaching my fortress, I noticed you looked more like a man with a purpose then just someone who wanted to kill us all. Care to tell me what business you have here?"

"Nothing seems to get past your eyes, does it?"

I chuckled. "Yeah, something pretty close to that."

"Anyway, I'm looking for an artifact. I was summoned to pick it up, and to eliminate anyone who would stand in my way. I suppose you're going to oppose me. I'm looking for a certain person and I will not have my chance at vengence be hindered by a squabbling group of humans."

Normally, someone would have tensed up after saying those words but my vision caught none of it. "Well, them are fightin' words if I have ever heard some," I said, lifting my blades slightly. "As for this artefact, I know this fortress inside and out and have not seen anything that might've resembled an artefact. You sure you got the right place?"

"I will not waste time with this. If I am to catch the person I'm after, I must complete this mission as soon as possible. Do not stand in my way." Through his eyes, whether he was aware of it or not, I could see his aura darkening.

"I see. You are short of patience. That makes two of us. If you're going to attack us, then do it already. Your spirit contradicts your words. You want to fight us. Very well, come a-" I narrowly sidestepped an open-palm thrust to my body. The stranger moved with unreal speed. His movements were nothing for my eyes to keep up with, but if this was his pace, then my body won't be able to react on time. This guy was very powerful.

I saw the brief moment of absolute shock in the man's eyes as he'd missed, but it was quickly gone. He brought up a foot to kick my chest and I barely brought my swords up in time to block it. Still, the force was enough to knock me off the jet's body. When I hit the ground, I rolled into it and got to my feet. The force of that kick was insane!

Omnem tried to fire several missiles, but the hooded man managed to deflect all of them by forcefully slapping the sides of their bodies. A large dark globe of energy formed in his hands and he shot it out like lightning. The speed was too much for the jet to evade and it ended up ripping through one of its wings. Spiraling out of control, Omnem abandoned the jet and let it crash into the ground, engulfing some nearby soldiers. I'll be sure to have a talk with him about aiming the aircraft AWAY from my soldiers.

I met up with him and gave him a once-over to check for any injuries. "You good?"

"Yes. This man, I hate to say it, but we are outmatched. He is a warrior that's over a thousand years old. He is not even of this world," Omnem spoke with apprehension. I sighed.

"Great. ANOTHER trans-dimensional being with God-like powers. That's so cliche." The stranger landed on the ground about thirty feet from us.

"I'm normally a man of honor. Since none of you can suspend yourself in the air, I will restrict myself to the ground. Do not think I will go any easier," he warned. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Good. I'd be insulted if you did. It's good to see another man of honor. It is something that was sorely lacking in my world." He glanced curiously at me, not quite understanding my words. He kept his questions to himself and charged us again. Us three battled in harsh, hand-to-hand combat for three full minutes before it had ended.

Me and Onmen were laid out on the ground, panting heavily. Despite the immense pain coursing throughout my entire self-healing body, I couldn't help but laugh. I did this even as the man stood over me, his shadow cloaking me in darkness.

"You are defeated, yet you laugh?"

I regained my mirth and grinned, even though I couldn't move a single bone in my body. "That was one helluva fight. It was even better then the one Omnem here gave me." I looked over that the demon who had transformed into his true form immediately following the real start of the fight. The demon was glaring at the stranger with intense hatred. He was a demond of Pride, or of all sins, so having been beaten twice in just as many days must have really been hard on him.

"If you want the damn artefact that bad, then go and get it. I have no idea where it is or what you're even talking about," I said. As he was about to go, I called out to him again. "Hey, you got a name?"

He stopped and turned to me before speaking, "You can call me Abraham. It is likely we will never meet again. But if we do, I wouldn't mind having another fight, so as long as you've gotten stronger."

"hehe, Abraham. I'll remember that. Y'know, I could see every single one of your moves." I saw his eyes remain the same. "I could see every single muscle twitch in every bit of your body."

"I know. I noticed it within the first twenty seconds of our fight. You could clearly see my moves, but my speed still made it very hard for you to react to. You've got potential...don't waste it."

He took off straight for my tower; more specifically, my window. I just hope Onyx got out of there in time. I could see him blow through the wall like it was nothing. My hearing detected more noises, then a frustrated shout, before Abraham flew out of my new bigger window and came down to me.

"It appears the artefact is not here like my employers had promised. I'm sorry for the big fuss."

I couldn't help what I did next. I laughed. I laughed my lungs out, even if every bit of it hurt like hell. Heck, even Omnem started laughing. More surprisingly, even Abraham chuckled abit before flying off like a superman-wannabe. Despite my laughing, my vision started to fade. I barely make out the silhoutte of Onyx racing to us. When she got there, she immediately kneeled over my form, gasphing at some of my injuries.

"Don't worry, friend. I'm just...going...to take a little nap." My vision went black and I entered the familiar warmth of darkness.

* * *

**A/N: I know it's a disappointment and I'm really sorry. **


	12. I Like Sushi

**A/N: And I'm back with this next chapter of The Wrathful One. There isn't much I can really say about the story now. Adam will be getting some surprising news though.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FFX or any of the canon characters. I don't own any of TUC's characters as well.**

* * *

_(Two days later)_

Adam slowly opened his eyes, grimacing as the blurry world around him. He stiffly brought his hand up to his eyes and wiped away the crud from his lids and sighed as everything came into better focus. He was lying in the infirmary with bandages wrapped around each of his appendages, torso, and his chest.

_(__first person, Adam PoV)_

"Ooouuughhhh" I groaned as I lifted my throbbing head to observe the surroundings. In the bed across from me laid the human form of Omnem, he was equally covered in bandages.

"Hey...Omnem...wake your lizard ass up," I barked hoarsely. The demon of Pride mumbled before soon waking up as well. He looked around to see where he was and noticed all the bandages on my body.

"haha, you took quite a beating," he mocked.

"Oh yeah, well look at you. You look like Rihanna after Chris Brown got done with her," I retorted. The man/demon looked at me with a confused expression, one I just waved off. "They're a celebrity couple. She gave him a sexual disease so he smacked her around. Pretty funny stuff in my opinion."

A small look of realization dawned on his face. "In my travels to your world, I learned of many things. One of them is that there's nothing about those celebrities that make them special. A waste of a life for anyone reporting it."

"hehehhe, aint that the truth. Stupid rich folks think they're the center of the world. That's why one day I'm gonna find me a woman to settle down with," I announced, a sense of serenity in my voice.

Omnem was looking at me curiously now, like I'd said something that interested him. "What?"

He put on his thinking cap for a moment before he finally remembered the entire reason he was even here. "That's right, I was coming to tell you something, Carver. You don't know this, but this fortress has been frequently visited by the Nered people."

I raised a brow. "The Who?"

"The Nered. They're similar to your world's mermaid legends, except they're more humanoid. They rule the seas around here and are responsible for the defense of part of my island fortress if you don't remember."

Fuzzy images of that meeting were playing rapidly but I did seem to recall him mentioning something about Nered people. Anyway, why would they visit here? "Okay, while I'm usually obliged to make a good first impression," I sent a smirk to the demon lord and he rolled his eyes, "what does this have to do with me?"

The answer he'd give me was definitely not on my guess list.

"Their queen, Sedna, has the Amulet of Dusk, which is half of an artifact that the people who sent Abraham are after."

"Oooooohhh..."

"Not only that, but she refuses to take a Nered male as a mate. She wishes to have a strong human one." He looked at me expectantly and I returned the stare blankly, waiting for him to cont- "Oh-Oooohhh!"

"Yeeaahhhh.." Omnem replied as if he was talking to a slow-minded child. "I honestly doubt you would have ever found a woman who'd honestly love you."

"Coming from the mass-rapist who sucks so bad with women, he can only bang his daughters," I countered. I was met instantly with a loud growl from the demon yet his injuries have yet to completely heal. "Don't hate the player, hate the game."

He mulled over my words and eventually calmed down. "Touche, _human_."

"Dammit, stop calling me that, you blind gecko!"

"Dense primate!"

"Yo momma's so black-" "-Don't even go there!" he shouted with a snarl.

We were both quiet for a few minutes before we both started laughing. We both laughed together for a few minutes before finally settling down from the pain in our chests. It was nice that we could get along so easily. I doubted Omnem trusted me alot, and I feel the same, but hey..we've got to start somewhere, right?

"Oh, boy, but really..are you suggesting I hook up with the Nered queen?" I was looking at him, expecting him to admit it as a joke.

"I'm serious. From what I have heard of her, she's naturally curious and is friendly to her friends, yet distant to strangers. She's probably your type."

"Okay, that narrows it down to just about a handful of possibilities," I said sarcastically.

"Shut up. I'm not finished yet," he demanded. "Anyway, she doesn't like land dwellers even though she wants a human mate."

"Ironic."

"Tell me about it. Continuing on, I hear she values loyalty and honesty above anything else, so I'm sure you could enjoy someone with those values."

"Yeah, human or not, she beats out most of the women back home. Continue please. You have my interest."

He scoffed but does so anyway. "Well, she has a similar appetite as you, as in eating land dwellers if she needs to."

"Oh really, a girl with an appetite. I hope she doesn't look like she could eat a behemoth and have room for seconds," I joked. We both chuckled but from him shaking his head, it seemed she was not a blimp. 'Thank God!'

"No, the Nered queens have a history of being the most beautiful females of their generation, the newer being prettier then the last," he explained. I whistled, impressed.

"Okay, so far, you've got me hooked, now seal the deal."

"Well, like women of their kind, they are very lustful towards their mates and they purr to those they really like," he said casually.

"OH, HELL YEAH! SHE'S PERFECT!" I yelled, slapping my knee, only to wince as a sharp pain coursed through my body from the act.

* * *

_(The next day)_

Me and Omnem were finally out of the medical ward and walking around. I wanted to oversee any damages to the fort, including my room, while Omnem joined to further explain the Nered people, the Queen, and to meet his daughter. Apparently, not only could we get the Amulet Dusk and me get a hot, half-mermaid wife/Queen, but we could grow food in the ocean for the fort to better supply the soldiers and the allegiance will bring up the morale from the recent loss. While he was doing the first two, the last thing did itself as Onyx came sprinting up to us.

"Father! Adam! I did not know you two were well enough to move! I was so worried when I saw you both nearly unconscious the other day." She embraced her father and planted a series of kisses on him, while I just stood there.

'I want some kisses,' I mentally whined, though in a teasing manner. Still, it would feel good to have a woman worry about me like that. Despite the incest being infinitely creepy, atleast Omnem had someone. 'Or well, some-hundred-ones to be more accurate.'

"Onyx, daughter, I couldn't stand to be in bed anymore and Adam more then agreed with me. Sense the demonstration of the new troops had been cancelled b/c of my absence, I've been telling him about the Nered people and their queen."

Her eyes widened as she remembered her own knowledge of them. Since her father mentioned the queen, she easily put two and two together. With that found out, she gained a sly smirk and came tip-toeing to me. "Aw, Adam's finally gonna find someone to hold him in bed," she teased.

I gave her a growl to let her know how I feel about that statement. So far, she was the only one he'd let tease him about that night.

"Anyway, there are more important matters to attend to then my lack of love life, and that is the gaping hole in my bedroom wall," I said in a professional manner. I'm sure I'd enjoy the new draft, but it's a bit lacking in the privacy factor."

As I said that, some workers started screaming and the walls of my room collapsed, bringing the floors on top of the it crashing down to a few levels below my room. I rubbed my eyes and sighed.

"Correction, I can cross 'gaping hole in my bedroom wall' off my list. New task: Get a new room." I did my best to ignore the snickers of the father and daughter beside me. "That's okay. I know Charlie will keep me company." We all looked over to see the behemoth sleeping soundly like a baby by the nearby wall, occasionally swiping at the something from his dream.

Onyx looked unimpressed. "Yeah, like he would notice. Anyway, when are the Nered suppose to come visit?" she asked her father. It took a few moments for him to remember something like that but said it would be a couple of days. The Nered made it a habit to visit once a couple of months..or something like that. When the topic of the Amulet of Dusk came up, Onyx had a light-bulb moment.

"Oh, I had managed to grab the Sigil Stone from Adam's room before that Abraham man blew through the wall. He must've known where it would have been located because as he was only in there for a few moments," she explained as if she'd been right in the room.

We were about to enter in the underground network of the fortress so I could continue my inspection. I was going to wait to show Omnem what I've been hiding but the appearance of this Abraham and this secret group was forcing me to play my hand so soon. However, when Onyx had talked about how the enemy knew of my fortress' layout so intimately, I lost my temper.

"GRRAAGHH!" My fist slammed into the stone walls of the corridor leading to the secret research division. The wall stood no chance against my anger and crumbled to dust. The veins on my arms and forehead were protruding from the skin and my golden eyes were narrowed sharply.

"Why is it that there are enemies that know everything about me and my base?! Was Sergei such an incompetent fool?! I haven't even been in for a week and I've already got you as an ally and some secret society scheming beneath my nose."

I breathed sharply and deeply several times as I tried to rein in my anger, but those emotions were the source of my power for a reason. I turned to Omnem, who looked less then amused, and Onyx, who seemed surprised by my sudden tantrum.

"Omnem, I'm very pissed off now. I'll be more then willing to trust you with everything as long as you don't make me regret it. I'm going to find these people and hunt them all down one by one, even if all of Spira burns!"

The demon smirked in an evil fashion, like he liked what he saw. "Perhaps I'll be able to say the same about you sooner then I thought, Adam," he replied cryptically.

The answer was good enough for me, so retracting my fist from the hole I'd made, I led them to the massive, 40ft doors that sealed the research division and its scientists and engineers off from the rest of the world.

Lifting the door with the help of Omnem to make it easier, Onyx slipped in underneath and Omnem followed while I held it up. He held it from the other side so I could crawl under. Apparently, I need to get the door fixed. As I gave them the tour of the inside, I was surprised by how quickly and efficiently the workers worked when brought together for a common cause.

We maneuvered through the workplaces were there were a few engineers working on maintenance and I explained the basic purpose of each level to them. The space opened up when we entered the smelting factory and assembly lines. None of this would've been possible had the first owners of the base not already dig the cavern out and put the machinery in place before he got to this world. Sergei had just left it a dump, or possibly didn't even know about it.

I showed them the assembly lines that traveled in a snake-like pattern. This was where the individual parts where made for the 'doomsday weapon' I had wanted to build, thanks in no small amount to an ancient set of blueprints found by one of the first recon maintenance groups I sent down here in my spare time to see what could be done with the place.

"So, what is it exactly you're making?" Omnem asked. "All I've noticed is the surplus of parts being forged, yet no actually skeleton form of anything."

I gave him a stupid grin. "That's because we have not gotten to where the assembly hall is. Oh, your research division will have an orgasm over this, cuz in reality, I'm not building anything."

O.O The two looked at me dumbfoundedly. "What is that suppose to mean?" Onyx asked.

Like a child at Christmas, I rubbed my hands together while I made a silly giggle. "Adam, if you don't start making sense, I'm going to throw you into those smelting bowls back there," the demon Pride warned.

"It's simple," I claimed as I led them to the multi-leveled assembly hall. They stood by the railing to watched where many of the chunks of forged pieces were being lowered to. They couldn't see anything at the first level because of all the sparks and heat-torches being used.

"Logic dictates that if I'm not building something, then I'm..." I paused for them to get it right. Unsurprisingly, it was Omnem who finally caught on.

"With what I've seen, your division is nowhere near as sophisticated as ours, so..instead of trying to invent something that could match ours, you must have found and are currently rebuilding something old but equally impressive."

"Ding-Ding-Ding! Congratulations, Omnem. You won. Your prize is a tour of the lower level for just your daughter to see what I'm resurrecting. And no, she can not tell you or she'll suffer the daddy of all wet-willies."

The two sweatdropped and stared at me like a moron. Of course, I can't blame them, so I threw the cheesy grin away. "I'm just kidding," I started in a more serious manner. I ushered them to follow me down to the lowest levels, helping them navigate through the work-infested halls and rooms to the main assembly hall. I received salutes and greetings from all the men I passed by, all seemed happy to be in their own world, working on something so old and advanced.

When we got into the room finally, I lifted my arms in a dramatic fashion. Superbia Omnem and Onyx looked from behind me to gaze upon a strange sight. Before them all was a massive metal skeleton that resembled some kind of creature. The construct was just the skeletal system now with some of the insides showing more advanced technology that was being repaired by engineers and scientists by following instructions on some ancient looking papyrus.

The skeletal figure was just being suspended a feet yards off the ground by dozens of chains, but it easily dwarfed everyone in the room. It looked to be about fifty-feet tall.

"My researchers found this beautiful gem's blue prints a couple of days ago. The body wasn't found till yesterday they tell me."

A scientist saw me and ran up with a surprised face. "Fuhrer, I didn't expect you to come by so suddenly. As you can see, we've cleaned the area and have been making great use of it. We'd gotten ahead of schedule and are already working on restoring the core systems of the machine and doing our best to replicate any damaged parts via the blueprints found."

I smiled and patted his shoulder, giving it a good squeeze. "Excellent work, and impeccable timing really. How much longer til it will be ready?"

The scientist was wearing some strange goggles that had five different ocular lens on it. He looked over at the workers who were slaving away on the massive super-structure and down at his blueprints that he had in his hand.

"Well, whoever made this made sure that it would be the only one of its kind. There are some parts that have no design prints to them, so it'd be disastrous to take them apart to study, however, these parts have absolutely no signs of damage on them. Whatever materials they're made from are tougher then anything I've ever seen. Given that we have to replicate and install the rest of the body and its parts, I'll guess at about two weeks maximum, Fuhrer."

He seemed nervous as I sighed at the time given, but I let him know I wasn't upset. "Take your time to make sure you don't mess anything up. If you suspect anything to be flawed, don't hesitate to go back over it. You're no rush. I'd atleast like to see it alive in a month's time."

The Al-bhed scientist's eyes lightened up. "Yes, Fuhrer. It should definitely be ready by then."

I turned around to see the most curious expressions on the two demons' faces as they tried to figure what this machine was.

"Intrigued?"

"Adam, what is it you're building? It looks...familiar, but the closest thing I can think of has been gone for over a thousand years."

My brow rose as I noticed how close he actually was. "Let me jog your memory, my fellow senior citizen." I gesture to the monstrosity before us. "In one month's time, the world will once again be inhabited by the Shatterer, the hybrid between machina and demon, now brought back to life."

* * *

The trio left the research division, two of them relatively surprised by what was going on below Outer Sanctuary. They then spent the rest of the day taking it easy and reviewing what they know or suspect of this organization, as well as plotting the inevitable counter-attack against the Paladins to avenge Omnem's 600-somethin' daughters who were killed and their bodies buried in rubble. We also went over the things Onyx discovered after interrogating that one woman who Adam picked out. The woman was useless so I had her 'play' with Onyx.

_(two days later) _

I looked out over the shore line at the foot of the West wall. It was a well defensible place against any army. There was only up to the west gate, one that would force the invaders to funnel their troops into. With just a gun emplacements, it would be a regular Thermopylae setting. However, this time, the fort would be invaded by something far more cunning and dangerous then any army or invader, just two words- royalty, and women.

Sedna, the supposedly beautiful and honorable Queen of the Nered people who inhabited this part of the sea. Their territory apparently stretched all the way to where Kilika was, so it was a pretty big piece of real estate. The idea was that Omnem suggested that I get together with this mer-woman because she possesses the piece of an artifact called the Amulet of Dusk, which is said to bestow its wielder with unmatched powers of darkness.

Personally, he wouldn't care for its power, but the fact that an unknown enemy attacked him for its sister-piece was enough for him to make it a concern. While the plan was for him to get together with her for that sole purpose, I couldn't help but wonder if she was everything Omnem said. She sounded like the perfect woman for someone like me, which is saying ALOT.

It could be very likely that love could bloom between us. He wasn't against the idea of falling in love, just a little cautious. He could thank the majority of his past relationships for that character flaw. Footsteps behind me alerted of the presence of Onyx trying to sneak up on me.

"You sound like a stampede of buffalo, Onyx."

I could hear her deflate like a balloon now that her fun was spoiled. "You're no fun sometimes," she whined.

"What are you talking about?" I asked as I turned to her. "I'm loads of fun."

"The only fun thing you've done is when we were killing those spies. That, and watching you and Father beat the crap out of each other."

I sighed in defeat, showing her the softer side of my persona that hardly anybody else gets to see. "You think she'll like me?" I asked, actual bits of worry seeping into my voice and eyes. The difference was enough to baffle her.

"Woah, you..." she took a moment to rethink her words, not wanting to hurt him when his shields have been lowered. "Give yourself more credit, Adam. I'm sure you'll do fine. If she treats you bad, I won't have a problem comforting you," she said, the last part sounding more like a tease to lift my spirits.

I blushed a little, something I just can't really control. "Besides the tease, thanks."

The demon of Desire slapped me on the arm like a regular bud from Earth. "No, problem. I'll pick you up if you fall down, Adam. They should be here soon, so it'd be best to already be there to not keep her waiting," she suggested.

I nodded and walked down the ramp to the ground below. After that, I simply had the men open the gates while Onyx went on to find her father. She's been a ton of help lately. She and Omnem took a little time to refresh my memory on the Nereds and Sedna, as well as teach some forms of formality. We had to cut things short when Onyx offered for her and her father to demonstrate some sex positions, naming off a few that had his face red. The 'tug-of-war' was not something I needed to see from those two.

Heck, I still had his V-card (virginity). The only thing me and my past love-interest did while Ansem was waiting was make out, though it involved a bunch of biting and clawing, thus the reason for the audible moans from the room that the spirit heard.

I walked down the zig-zagging path, clothed in a new attire. It was a sleeveless overcoat whose tail billowed behind my knees as the wind blew through it. I wanted to just remain shirtless since I was so use to it from my training before I got to Spira, but Onyx insisted I look nice, hence the cape/coat that looked two sizes too big. She assured that's the way it was meant to be. I wore a pair of loose trousers that were a similar color of blue to my older, more worn-out pair. The leg ends were rolled up to the bottom of my muscular calves so they wouldn't drag to bad in the soft, wet sand.

I stepped to the edge of the water and waited patiently. Heck, with what I'm suppose to be doing, I don't mind waiting for a little while. As the cold water rushing from beneath the sand touched the soles of my feet, I reveled in the chilly sensation that zipped up my spine. The rough morning waves lapped against my legs, getting the bottoms of my pants wet, but I didn't mind.

My solitude was interrupted by the low cacophony of some kind of horn. I've heard it before, but not to this agree. It was a conchs shell. I looked out over the waves of the water and saw a body floating, the body being upright. I could see down to their waist. The person looked nothing like I'd ever seen. White skin that had a bluish shading to it, strange, faded maroon markings on the body that looked like short stripes of lightning bolts along the stomach, waist, and along the noticeable, uncovered breasts of the now-identified female.

In her hands, she was holding a large shell, undoubtedly the conchs shell I'd just heard. She saw me, her amber-colored eyes making contact before she went back under. A few moments later, the same one returned, except with four others. Her and three others formed a sort of box-perimeter around a fifth one. I felt my breath leave me as I gazed upon Sedna for the first time.

Wanting to get a closer look, even with the risks of getting into the water with known man-eaters, I stepped further into the salty water. My enhanced eye-sight could clearly see the look of surprise on their faces at my actions. They must've had to come out on land during their last visits to this place. They continued to come closer though, even as I closed the distance as well.

When we finally came within five yards of each other, we stopped at about waist deep of water. I was glad I shortened her trip so I could gaze upon this aquatic beauty. She had a large swath of blonde hair that went all the way down to the water at her waist. She had two large strands of hair handing along her front, framing her face in a picture of ethereal gracefulness and beauty.

When she lifted her arm fins out of the water, they turned quickly to that of a more humanoid arms and hands. She sported a elegant tsawl that had no arm sleeves and simply fell down her front and back; being in water, the tunic stuck to her form, outlining her womanly curves. Her face was beautiful, not only in looks but skeletal structure as well. She had a narrow chin, thin lips the color of her skin though abit darker, deep eye socket that slanted and high ridged eyebrows with the same body marks. Her eyes, unlike the others, was a crimson red color that gave her an exotic look.

I was too busy admiring her body to notice that she was doing the same to me. I didn't have much left to show with just the shoulder-cape on and the short bit of my arms that were covered by it. Like I did her, she found my golden eyes very animal and exotic, a major plus for me.

Remembering my manners, I tilted my head forward in a small bow of respect. "Queen Sedna, it is a privilege to meet you after hearing so much from Omnem."

She seemed taken back by my mentioning Omnem. "That's interesting, for a human to have talked to Omnem and be alive today."

"Queen, for future reference, please don't ever call me human again. I've long since disowned that name. I am simply what I am now. Nothing more, nothing less," I said, knowing I cut her off. "And for the record, me and Omnem are in an alliance together. We had an interesting talk over dinner and fought. I barely won, but proved to be more of a benefit as a friend then a foe."

She and her maidens seemed stunned that I'd interrupt her but if we were going to make this work, then we needed to be able to see eye to eye. They even blinked several times to make sure they heard me right when I said I beat Omnem in a fight. Sedna didn't seem as angry as the others, more like she was very curious about me.

"You have the body of a human, do you not? Are you a demon in disguise? You definitely have much dark energy in you," she spoke in a silky tone that was probably design for the sole purpose of attracting and seducing a mate.

"I am no demon. My capabilities far exceed those of any humans and of many demons though years of training. My dark power is the storing and releasing of my Wrath into a physical form."

"Interesting indeed," she said, more to herself. She circled around me, eyeing me up and down like a predator, perhaps trying to figure me out. "Last time I visited here, I had to put up with a horribly rude human, one named Sergei. Is he too busy with his whores to pay proper respect for my arrival?"

I smirked, which got her attention. "That sorry fleshbag has been slain by my wrath. He did not deserve the power and authority that he had. This fortress is now under my control, and things have most certainly been running differently then back then. I apologize for not being here to kill him then."

She giggled, a sound that cause my knees to weaken. 'What the hell kind of effect is she having on me?' I wondered in amazement.

"I must find some way to thank you then,..." she waited expectantly for me to introduce myself.

"My name's Adam Carver, your highness. I am hoping we can have a good relationship from now on, one that benefits us both. I recognize that without your people allowing us access to the sea for food, then this fortress would have long since perished. I hope to be able to repay the favor in some way to you and your people."

I could already hear Ansem complimenting me on being smooth and suave. Where the hell has that bastard been, anyway? I came out of my thought to see pleased looks on all the Nered women's faces. Apparently, they hadn't been expecting these change of events and maybe their opinions will soon change. I also noticed the mischievous look and smile from Sedna.

"That's very kind of you, Adam," her hips gained an extra inches in their swaying, an act that was clearly testing my skill of holding down a blush. "My people have long since wanted to destroy this place when it was being ruled by that sloth. I was actually coming to announce the end of our leniency towards Sergei, but if you speak the truth, then perhaps this deal can be resumed."

She swayed up within a foot of me, her scent intoxicating my nostrils, her breath like cool wind on my face. "Perhaps even strengthen our truce?" she added, literally purring into my ear.

'DAYUM! The woman moves fast!' I cried in my head tears of joy.

"I honesty from my people, my friends, and any potential suitor above all else. Will that be a problem?"

Even with an empire and a kickin' body like that, she's appeared very down to earth and aware of its ways. To have a value of a characteristic like honesty above any form of pleasure or material possession was more then good enough in my books. We can definitely make this work.

"You're a woman after my own heart, Queen Sedna."

She chuckled and placed a silk smooth hand on my chest, either wanting to cop a feel or to relay her feelings about her words. "Please, Adam, just call me Sedna," she requested with another purr. 'I SWEAR THAT'S AROUSING!'

"Very well, Sedna," I replied with a sincere smile. She felt her heart flutter abit then pick up speed. She definitely liked the way he said her name.

"Would you care to walk with me as we talk," she asked flirtatiously, her arm already snaking around my left one and pressing it against her. I tried to form cohesive words as the softness of her chest could be felt through the tsawl she wore.

"Of course, Sedna. I don't mind staying in the water, so you don't have to worry about feeling vulnerable on land," I assured her with a soft smile. Some of the maidens there gushed over the thoughtfulness I showed.

Turning to said maiden escorts, Sedna gave them a smile and a dismissive wave. "Wait for my return, friends, and I'll tell you about it later."

As we walked away, to be able to better move, I navigated us to just knee-deep water. Sedna stayed possessively clung to my arm, sometimes even using her opposite arm to gentle rub and feel it up. I also noticed the large fins that hung from the sides of her admittedly nice rear.

"So Adam, just a curious question: how did you come by your dark power? Our species, especially me, have the most advance natural senses when it comes to detecting light and dark powers, and not in a bad you, you reek of darkness."

I chuckled and she seemed please that I wasn't offended. Heck, can't blame her if it's true.

"I'm actually from another world," I opened up, startling her that I'm that not of this planet. Then again, I don't talk like many other people do, nor dress like them. "I was given a choice by this spirit of darkness named Ansem. He offered me a way out of my abysmal life. He saw potential in me. I accepted and he sent me into a dream world created by my own imagination. I was transformed into a young boy and from then til I turned 18, I was raised by a pair of insanely strong and unstable teachers."

I smirked as I knew those two maniacs were probably sneezing their heads off right now. I had the woman on my arm's full attention now.

"They helped train my body and mind to new superhuman levels. They beat me relentlessly everyday for so many years. Strange enough, I never got angry at them, not once. It wasn't til I had to defeat one of my teachers in combat and succeeded did Ansem bring me to this world. He revealed that I hadn't got angry once because he was collecting the anger in my heart throughout all those years without me knowing it. When it showed me the container my wrath was in, it was nearly at the verge of breaking. He implanted all that built-up hatred inside of me for an entire week while I was in a magic-induced coma inside some crystals. A week later, I emerged the being I am today."

As I finished, I looked down and laughed at the amazement in her eyes.

"So, care to tell me about yourself?" I really wanted to know about this woman who I was suppose to mate with, according to Omnem's plan. She had excellent values, so I'm sure her actual past is interesting. She took a few moments to gather her thoughts before spilling her own beans.

"Well, like all the others before me, I was born from the past Queen of the Nered. I was always more independent then the rest of the Nereds my age, and it often got me into trouble. I was told that I'd have to mature soon if I'm to be Queen. At first, I didn't want to be Queen if I couldn't be me, but then I discovered that if I'm Queen, no one had the authority to make me be different," she explained.

It made alot of sense. I probably wouldn't have even thought of that. "Pretty clever of you." She smiled at the compliment and only hugged my arm to her breast that much tighter. I was on her left side, so she held my arm with her right as she ran her left up and down mine affectionately.

"Thank you, I thought so too myself. Well, the day I became Queen, there were many suitors around my age that were brought before me." Her smile disappeared into an annoyed frown. "I was told to pick one to be my mate."

I whistled, knowing exactly how she felt, having been forced to watched those chick flicks by my sisters; those movies like 'The Princess Bride' or whatever. It may not be an exactly accurate metaphor, but it was close enough. "And let me guess, you said no."

She nodded her head rapidly. "Absolutely! I knew most of them and they were not the type of mate I wanted. I refused and the cycle continued as new potential mates were brought before me. Some were kind and nice, but they just weren't what I wanted...they weren't what I needed."

"So you decided to look towards the humans for a possible mate?" I garnered, already knowing the story but playing ignorant.

"Yes. The humans to me were exotic and different. Plus, I thought it'd be useful for our people if we'd had hybrid Nered who could move in water and on land."

"True, I guess that would be good enough reason to go against the norm of society. I was always one of those who went against the current. I felt like whenever I moved with it, I'd have no control of my life, so I decided to live the way I wanted to. Ansem has helped me realize that dream more then I imagined."

I felt her rest her head on my arm and let out a contented sigh. "A man after my own heart."

She took my hand subtly and intertwined her fingers with mine. I raised a brow at her and she looked at me with a sly smile. Looking at that face, I couldn't help but smile and shake my head like 'what am I going to do about you?'

"So," she started then pausing for a moment. "does it seem there's a chance for us?" she asked, tilting her head over to look up at my face.

"There's a chance much more," I replied while giving her hand a gentle squeeze. She grinned and caught me off guard by sticking her foot behind mine and tripping me.

I fell backwards with a yelp but when I tried to surface, she was already straddling my lap.

'DAAAYYUUUM! Is she being timed or something!?' My thoughts were muddled as she crushed her lips against mine. She pressed my head against hers harder with her hands, her tongue already trailing a path across my lips eagerly.

In my attempt to let out a breath of air, her wet, cold tongue took the opening and invaded my mouth. Long suppressed instincts from my training began to surface again as we had a war with our tongues and her legs wrapped around my body like a constrictor. The feeling was truly bliss, unlike any kiss I've ever had before.

Maybe it's because I love sushi? **(Pun totally intended xD)**

With her legs around me, she started grinding her hips against my crotch, hardening my stiffening muscle down there. She finally released the kiss and purred in satisfaction in my ear, an act that nearly made me lose it had I been any weaker of a man. Physically, he wanted this more then anything right now, but now just didn't feel like the right time. It felt too soon.

He tried to wrestle her legs off but they were in the water and she was damn strong!

"What are you doing?" she asked in a husky breath in between putting bite marks on my neck.

"I just..oh-ohhhhohoh.." she licked him from the neck up to behind his ear before biting it enough to draw blood. "I just think we're moving too fast," he managed.

She stopped and stared at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

I took a moment to compose myself before settling more comfortably in the water where just our chests, arms, and heads were out. She was looking at me with honest-to-God, the eyes of a lost or scolded puppy.

"I definitely want this, I do," I reassured her emotions. "It's just that my mindset isn't like yours. I'm just not ready to go that far. I'm absolutely positive we'll be trying to make babies like crazy soon enough, but I just want it to feel like the most special moment in the world to us."

From confusion came realization in her features. She reluctantly stopped grinding her womanhood against my crotch and rested her face in the crook of my neck.

"This sucks," she stated, breaking the rough silence. I couldn't help but bust out laughing.

''Trust me, it does for me too. You're sitting on the evidence as we speak." She had another sly grin on her face, one that I was starting to associate as 'the rape face.' She widened her rear cheeks and closed it down around the majority of his shaft.

"You mean we can't even do this?" she asked with her innocent face.

"Sedna, if that's suppose to be an innocent face, then I'm a behemoth."

* * *

Over where he was sleeping, Charlie sneezed loudly, the force and snot blowing away a nearby soldier.

* * *

Sedna "mmmmhhmmm" as she rolled her bottom onto my still-sheathed member. "Maybe you are."

I doubt my face has ever turned so red so fast. In fact, I think I just invented a new shade of red.

"I'm going to make you eat those words when we do mate," I warned.

"Oh, don't keep me waiting long. I might have to find someone else then," she teased, which earned her a growl.

"Like I'll let you at this point," he spoke sternly in her ear, sending chills down her back. "And to answer your question, I just said mate. Anything else is fair game."

She smiled devilishly but decided to be even more of a devil then he was being. "I'm good for kissing, but I think we should avoid anything too rough." She felt satisfaction when an animal-like whine escaped his lips. "Oh, I'm sorry. Does that suck?"

"You're really making this difficult," he muttered.

"hahaha, I know, but I've finally found a mate I want and he's being stubborn because he doesn't feel ready. You're lucky I haven't just raped you by now. I'm much stronger then you in water, so you could fight, but you won't win."

She said it so carefree. 'God, I'm in love,' Adam decided.

I shushed her with a deep kiss, one she happily returned. I decided that we would keep it to this level for a few days and see if these feelings weren't just a fluke. However, there was the problem of my major boner threatening to rip my pants. She seemed to finally notice my pained expression and wondered what was wrong til she realized that I was rock hard.

"Oh, need some help with that?"

I was totally fine with it, as long as it wasn't intercourse yet. I nodded and she scooted back and dipped her hands in the water to unzipped my trousers. She met some resistance from my budge being in the way, but she succeeded in freeing the erect penis. I suddenly gasped as her smooth hand wrapped around my cock, feeling her hand rub up and down on it. She looked pleased with what she saw.

"Mmmm, are you sure you want to wait?" she asked, an almost pleading look in her eyes. I reaffirmed with a bob of my head.

"Yes...I wasn't quite ready for anything like this so soon. I promise I'll make it up."

She leaned in and placed soft kisses up my neck with the occasional nibble. "I'll hold you to it. I valued honesty above everything, especially my mate." She began purring again as her hand movements went up and down my hard shaft.

As good as it felt, I didn't want to just be doing nothing. I brought a hand up underneath her tsawl and began fondling one of her nipple-less breasts. She moaned as my rough hands and fingers squeezed and massaged her globe of flesh.

"Oh, whatever you're doing, Adam, keep doing it," she purred into my neck. Geez, that never gets old!

Her hand movements quickened as she kissed me while I fondled each of her breasts one at a time. We kept at it to the point that I could feel the pressure in my cock building to new heights.

"Oh, keep it going, Sedna. I'm almost there," I groaned. She sped up her movements, trying to make me cum.

Just when I was close to my breaking point, she stops the hand movements as well as the kissing. Calmly, she spoke into my ear- "Let me finish this up, Adam. You just enjoy it."

Not knowing what she meant, realization hit me as her head disappeared into the water and all I could see of her was her mass of blonde hair. Seconds later, I was on a stairway to Heaven as I felt her cold mouth engorge my entire cock. I felt her teeth graze across the surface before lowering her head down on it, causing my head and a few inches to go past her tonsils and into her throat. But it didn't end there.

I felt her grip my balls and, one by one, stick them in her mouth along with my length. 'Holy crap! She has no gag reflex!' I shouted aloud.

Her bobbing motions continued for a full minute til I neared my limit.

"Oh..Ooohohhh god...Ooooh hell!" I groaned uncontrollably as I couldn't hold it any longer and my hands fisted into her locks of hair on the back of her head. On my final thrust, I pulled her head as hard as I could against me, showing my cock in as far as it could before I finally released my load.

I last my breath and my vision darkened as squirt after squirt of my seed shot down her throat. The Nered Queen swallowed it all in gulps while her tongue licked around my soaked head. I sat in the water, paralyzed, as she finished cleaning and swallowing all she could before her head slowly surfaced from the water like a snake.

She crawled onto my lap against and fully pressed her body against mine. Suddenly, she grabbed by still hard cock and rubbed her clit against it like a stripper pole. She breathed agonizingly slow and moved her lips to my ear. "That was only the beginning. This.." this humped the side of my cock again, "will be waiting fervently for you."

While still in a daze, my lips were captured again by Sedna. She passionately kissed me for several minutes before finally breaking it apart, both of us just out of it.

"I will make you regret making me now have you now," she promised. "I will have all of you, for however long I desire," she purred.

We stayed there in the water for several minutes, probably ten, just her sitting in my lap, resting her head on my chest while I ran my fingers contently through her hair.

"Let's us return," she suggested. "My maidens are likely waiting for my return. They'll really want to hear what happened. They were moved by your consideration for me and my people. Continue to win their hearts, and you will have mine forever."

She got up to allow me to get up as well. Taking our time, in no rush, we made our way back to the spot we met up at. When we came close, the four escorts form earlier emerged from the water with expectant faces.

"I believe this new alliance will be much better then the last," she told them. Sorta surprising some, but not all apparently, she claimed my lips one more time before departing. For her fun, she added that seductive sway to her legs and sent me one last wink over her shoulder. "Expect me each day til we make good on our deal," she 'ordered' before diving underneath the surface.

I stood there, still in disbelief of the events that happened today. No woman has ever had that kind of reaction to me, or from me. She must've felt the same as well. With my legs still shaky from the unforgettable meeting, I made my way back up to the fort. Omnem and Onyx will likely be curious about how the meeting went, though I'll be sure, for risk of embarrassment and harassment from Onyx, I'll leave out a certain part.

* * *

**And there be this chapter. A little half-lemon there that I'm surprised that I end up doing. If anyone wants to know what Sedna looks like, just go to deviant art, type in Sedna, and she should be the first picture, the one with the blue mer-woman with blonde hair. Well, this chapter took me long enough, so TUC, I hope you've got a nice chapter ready.**

**Also, if anyone wants a look at The Shatterer, just type Shatterer and Guild Wars 2.**


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